Fairburn’s Vanishing Evidence: A Legal and Moral Outrage

Samantha Hudson
Aug 9
3 min read

Updated: Aug 10

Citizens of Fairburn — the time to look away has ended.

What’s happening inside our city government is not just embarrassing; it is unlawful, unethical, and corrosive to democracy itself. The facts, laid bare in a 305-page motion filed in Fulton County Superior Court, paint a picture of deliberate deception, destruction of evidence, and a legal team that stood by — or worse, facilitated — the obstruction.

The Missing Messages

Under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 et seq. (Georgia Open Records Act), public records — including text messages on official business — belong to the people. Under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-34 and the Georgia Civil Practice Act, when litigation is pending, those records must be preserved. Under O.C.G.A. § 16-10-94 (tampering with evidence), it is a crime to knowingly destroy material with intent to obstruct a proceeding. And under O.C.G.A. § 45-11-1 and the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct, attorneys have a duty not to assist in illegal or fraudulent acts.

Yet, here’s what the court filing shows:

Mayor Mario Avery received formal litigation hold notices over a year before destroying or allowing the destruction of nearly a year’s worth of text messages between himself and Police Chief Anthony Bazydlo and City Administrator Tony Phillips.
The City’s attorneys allowed Avery to “self-collect” evidence — a method courts have warned against because self-interested actors can cherry-pick, delete, or alter records.
Not once, but twice, Avery handed over the wrong phone, costing thousands in unnecessary forensic costs. The attorneys did not intervene to verify the devices before wasting public and private resources.
Police Chief Bazydlo admitted under oath to deleting relevant text messages. The attorneys knew this and did not move to correct the record or retrieve backups.
Tony Phillips testified he exchanged texts with the Mayor during the relevant period, but the City never produced a single one. There is no evidence the attorneys compelled him to search his phone.
The City ignored the preservation mandate under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-26 and § 9-15-14(b), which allows for sanctions — including attorney’s fees — when a party abuses discovery.

This Is More Than Sloppiness — It’s Willful Spoliation

Georgia courts define spoliation as “the destruction or failure to preserve evidence necessary to contemplated or pending litigation.”The motion lays it out plainly: this wasn’t an accident. It was a pattern. A delay here, a “lost” device there, a claim of “technical issues” — all while litigation was ongoing. The attorneys, sworn officers of the court, had a duty to ensure preservation. Instead, they tolerated and facilitated conduct that any first-year law student knows is sanctionable.

Why This Is Dangerous

If public officials can delete incriminating records mid-lawsuit — and city attorneys can stand idle — then no citizen complaint, no whistleblower claim, no open records request is safe. The destruction of these messages robs the court, the plaintiffs, and the public of the truth. And it sends a chilling message:In Fairburn, the rules don’t apply to those in power.

The Public Must Demand Action

File Complaints with the State Bar of Georgia — Demand an investigation into whether the City’s attorneys violated the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct by allowing spoliation and obstructing discovery.
Contact the Georgia Attorney General and GBI — Ask for a criminal investigation into violations of O.C.G.A. § 16-10-94 (tampering with evidence) and any breaches of the Open Records Act.
Insist on City Council Oversight — Demand that the Council publicly question the Mayor, Chief Bazydlo, and Tony Phillips, under oath, about why records vanished.
Codify Stronger Local Policy — Require that all official communications — including texts — be backed up to city-controlled systems and collected by independent IT, not the individuals under investigation.

A Final Word

The Mayor’s oath of office requires upholding the Constitution and laws of Georgia — not circumventing them. The City’s attorneys are bound by their bar license to uphold justice — not to serve as bodyguards for misconduct. What we have instead is a closed-door alliance of political and legal actors shielding themselves from accountability.

This is not just a court matter — it is a civic emergency. If we do not act, the precedent is set: evidence can disappear in Fairburn with no consequence, so long as the right people are involved.

O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 says the records belong to us. O.C.G.A. § 16-10-94 says destroying them is a crime. O.C.G.A. § 9-15-14(b) says abusing discovery warrants sanctions. Now it’s time the people say: Enough.