CORRECTIONS: MARTA Driver Admits Having Sex With Disabled DeKalb Woman

CORRECTIONS (March 30): MARTA spokesman Lyle Harris has provided Patch with additional information on the sexual encounter between a MARTA paratransit bus driver and mentally and physically handicapped rider in 2011 which has spawned a lawsuit against the transportation agency.

The driver, Harris said, admitted that he had sex with the woman, but claimed that the sex was consensual. Although this act was a violation of MARTA policy, Fulton County DA Paul Howard’s office ruled that no crime had occurred and dismissed the case. It was not referred out to another agency, according to Howard.

Attorney Glenda Hatchett, who was once a judge on television, is now serving on the legal team for the civil lawsuit against the transit authority. Hatchett called MARTA’s conduct and claim that it isn’t responsible for the driver’s actions “outrageous,” according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

The civil case against MARTA is on the DeKalb County State Court docket, the AJC said.

ORIGINAL STORY (March 17): MARTA has drawn flak from some attorneys after they claimed they weren’t responsible for a sexual assault against a mentally and physically handicapped DeKalb County woman carried out by a MARTA paratransit bus driver in 2011.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the driver admitted to the assault, but is currently not facing any active criminal charges for the incident. Proceedings against the driver were referred to a misdemeanor criminal court by Fulton County DA Paul Howard, where they were dismissed. MARTA refuses to settle the civil matter out of court.

Judge Glenda Hatchett, who has made a name for herself on television, is now serving on the legal team for the civil lawsuit against the transit authority. Hatchett called MARTA’s conduct and claim that it isn’t responsible for the driver’s actions “outrageous,” according to the AJC.

The civil case against MARTA is on the DeKalb County State Court docket, the AJC said.