On a Friday morning, May 8, 1992, Atlanta Police Officer Randy John Schipani, a 34-year-old male, was on duty during the morning rush hour. He initiated a traffic stop on University Drive at the I-75 interchange. The vehicle he pulled over had tinted side and rear windows, obscuring the view of the occupants within. This required Officer Schipani to approach the front of the vehicle to see the driver.
As Officer Schipani looked through the windshield, the driver, a 15-year-old juvenile,
fired a handgun, fatally wounding him. Officer Schipani's partner immediately returned fire, killing the young assailant. The subsequent investigation revealed that the teenager was driving a car that had been stolen in Florida. It was also discovered that the juvenile had planned to shoot a police officer.
Officer Schipani had been a member of the Atlanta Police Department for five years. Before his service in Atlanta, he had served for three years with the Birmingham Auxiliary Police Department. He was survived by his wife, two brothers, and a sister. The incident was described as a shootout, and the body of Officer Schipani was removed from the scene on University Avenue where he was killed.
