On the evening of August 16, 2014, May Araim, a 68-year-old Iraqi-American woman from Houston, Texas, was walking through the tourist town of Helen, Georgia, when her life was abruptly ended. Araim, who was wearing a traditional hijab, was struck in the side by a stray bullet and was pronounced dead at the scene. The shot came from across Main Street, where a man sitting on a bench had accidentally discharged a handgun.
The man responsible was identified as Glenn Patrick Lampien, a
55-year-old business owner from Jasper, Georgia. Helen police officers responded to a call of shots fired around 10:40 p.m. and found Lampien with a gunshot wound to his own hand. Their investigation determined that Lampien had accidentally fired his small-caliber handgun, with the bullet striking his hand before traveling across the street and hitting Araim. Lampien was subsequently arrested and charged with felony involuntary manslaughter.
In the wake of the shooting, Araim's son filed a wrongful death lawsuit, questioning whether the shooting was truly an accident or if it was motivated by his mother's religious attire. The civil suit also alleged that Lampien was highly intoxicated at the time of the incident. This civil action proceeded alongside the criminal case against Lampien.
In January 2017, a White County jury found Glenn Patrick Lampien guilty of two counts of involuntary manslaughter. The jury determined that Lampien had caused Araim's death without intention while committing the unlawful acts of discharging a firearm near a public highway and reckless conduct. However, he was found not guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, and a charge of involuntary manslaughter by discharging a firearm while under the influence of alcohol. The following month, Lampien was sentenced to seven years, with the first four years to be served in prison, followed by three years of probation. He was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine.
