Richard Jewell, Wrongly Linked To Bombing, Dies
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
ATLANTA — Richard Jewell, the former security guard who was wrongly linked to the 1996 Olympic bombing and then waged a decade-long battle with news organizations to defend his reputation, died yesterday. He was 44.
Jewell was found dead in his west Georgia home. An autopsy was scheduled for today.
“There’s no suspicion whatsoever of any type of foul play. He had been at home sick since the end of February with kidney problems,” Coroner Johnny Worley of Meriwether County said.
Jewell was diagnosed with diabetes earlier this year and later had a few toes amputated. He had recently been on dialysis, the coroner said.
Lin Wood, Jewell’s longtime attorney, said in an e-mail to the Associated Press that he was “devastated” by the news. He described Jewell as “a dedicated public servant whose heroism the night of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing saved the lives of many people.”
“He will be missed, but never forgotten,” Mr. Wood said.
