On the evening of Sunday, October 12, 1997, a male Atlanta Police Officer named John Richard Sowa, aged 28, was tragically killed in the line of duty. He and his partner, Officer Patricia Cocciolone, were responding to a domestic disturbance call at an apartment complex located at 2430 Morosgo Way. The officers were assisting an intoxicated woman and ensuring she returned to her apartment safely.
As they were at the doorway, the woman's boyfriend, Gregory Paul Lawler, then 44 years old, unexpectedly opened fire on them with an AR-15 rifle.
The attack was sudden and brutal, leaving both officers with no time to react or draw their own weapons. Officer Sowa was struck multiple times and succumbed to his injuries at the scene. His partner, Officer Cocciolone, was also shot multiple times, including in the head, and was critically wounded. Despite her severe injuries, she was able to call for help. The gunman, Lawler, then barricaded himself inside his apartment for six hours before he was eventually taken into custody.
Following his arrest, Gregory Paul Lawler was charged with the murder of Officer Sowa and the assault on Officer Cocciolone. During his trial in Fulton Superior Court, he claimed he acted in self-defense, a claim that was contradicted by the evidence presented by the prosecution. On March 3, 2000, Lawler was convicted for the murder of Officer John Richard Sowa and was subsequently sentenced to death. After years of appeals, Gregory Paul Lawler was executed by lethal injection on October 19, 2016.
