200 in Atlanta play dead to protest deaths by cops

ATLANTA (AP) -- A protest in which participants played dead to demonstrate against recent killings by police drew more than 200 people in Atlanta.<br /> <br /> The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports ( http://on-ajc.com/1yquKs1 ) protesters staged a "die-in" Saturday afternoon on an overpass in midtown Atlanta. Protesters laid down on the bridge's sidewalk as traffic whizzed by and remained silent for 15 1/2 minutes.<br /> <br /> The timing was symbolic. Organizers said 11 minutes represented the number of times Eric Garner said "I can't breathe" while a New York police officer held him in a chokehold. The remaining 4 1/2 minutes represented the number of hours Michael Brown's body lay uncovered in the street after he was shot by an officer in Ferguson, Missouri.<br /> <br /> Grand juries declined to return indictments against the officers in each case, prompting protests nationwide.