Tonight, a black business owner says he's being bombarded with
911 calls targeting his business,
and it's all as he's trying to give back to
the community.
On one of the 911 calls,
an officer put the business owner in handcuffs.
And new at Six, Channel 2,
investigative reporter Ashley Lincoln is in the sweet Auburn District
with the reason some neighbors are complaining.
Yeah, this neighborhood is going through a transition.
Some call it gentrification. The owner of this shop tells
me transplants new to this neighborhood have called the police
on his neighborhood giveaways.
Multiple times so much so the city has placed these
right away vending not permitted signs around his business.
This is 3 visits within two days from police for
non-emergency.
There are accusations and interactions with police.
Yeah. What is going on Ernest Hood says he's been
dealing with in the last year.
It's not the best optics when you constantly have police
presence at your storefront.
He describes it harassment due to this neighbor who were
blurring and a handful of others.
Who constantly call 911 on his community give back events.
The attack on small businesses that are in communities that
are providing services for communities that are providing safe spaces
and communities they need to be protected.
Hood owns Ernie's in the Cut,
a grooming gallery, having hosted multiple back to school events
and summer free food programs for underserved youth in this
community.
Hood says the 911 calls are the same.
Claiming that there was a complaint from a neighbor saying
that we were vending food without a permit.
Records from Atlanta police show police were called to his
business more than 12 times in the last year.
Things came to a head on Juneteenth when police placed.
Handcuffs on bending without a permit allegation during a gathering
at the shop.
Says according to police, the complaints are coming from neighborhood
transplants as the community embraces a gentrified landscape.
We're in a historic black business district,
Sweet Auburn District, where a block away from Ebenezer.
I would even challenge people to ask themselves,
why do I want to move to this place where.
I'm around people that I have such a conflict with,
and none of the neighbors who call it 911 wanted
to make a comment with us.
In the meantime, Hood was released by police during that
Juneteenth incident,
and his summer free lunch program has been suspended because
of all of these 911 calls.
Reporting in Edgewood, Ashley Lincoln,
Channel 2 Action News.