APD Employee, Fired After Daughter Disseminates Controversial Chaka Zulu Shooting Footage, Slaps City with Lawsuit
ATLANTA – Unjustifiable Termination Unleashes Legal Consequences
April 9, 2024, opened a new chapter in civil lawsuits involving the city as Rhonda Frost, the disgraced ex-public relations manager for the Atlanta Police Department (APD), filed litigation against the city administration. The former deputy director of public affairs at the APD has accused the City, Mayor Andre Dickens, and Police Chief Darin Schierbaum of wrongful termination.
Frost alleges she was investigated, sent home, and consequently terminated following public criticisms voiced by her daughter against the Atlanta Police’s handling of the murder charges involving celebrity manager, Chaka Zulu — a case that transpired in a Buckhead shooting back in 2022.
Complications Involving Daughter and the Chaka Zulu Case
As Frost’s employment track record vividly depicts four years of glowing reviews, she vehemently challenges that the drastic shift in her professional standing originated from her daughter’s defiant online activism. The controversy ignited when Frost’s daughter, Shanae Hall, released video footage of the deadly Buckhead shooting on Instagram and subsequently slammed the APD.
In an Instagram post, Hall questioned, “My confusion is why the DA would charge Chaka Zulu with murder and aggravated assault after watching the video where he was attacked.” Engaging a national audience, Hall’s controversial video shed light on the fatal shooting, which happened in the restaurant Apartment 4B’s parking lot in June 2022.
Unjust Murder Charges and Job Losses
Chaka Zulu, real name Ahmed Obafemi and known for being rapper Ludacris’ manager, was a victim in this horrific incident. He took a bullet to the back while another man lost his life and two others sustained injuries. The incident changed Frost’s life forever, with the charges against Zulu adversely affecting her professional standing at the APD.
“How can you be charged with murder in a stand your ground state when you have been stomped into the ground by five grown men, as soon as you get to your feet, you pull your weapon and fire one shot, and you start to runoff back to your place of business?” Hall lamented, challenging the APD’s handling of the case.
Last November, Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis dropped all charges against Zulu — who had endured life-endangering injuries and a tough recovery in the ICU. Regardless, this did little to alter the APD’s views about Frost, whom they suspected leaked the shooting video to her daughter.
Subsequently, Frost was sent home to work in November 2022, and ten months later, officers arrived at her place to deliver the news of her termination. Frost responded to this termination notice with a legal suit filed on March 18th against the City, APD, and the Mayor.
No Official Comment on the Pending Case
When contacted about the lawsuit, APD and the Mayor’s office refused to comment, noting they do not comment on pending legal matters. Frost, alongside her attorney, similarly refrained from commenting on the case, pending its resolution in court.
