Richard Jewell

Richard Allensworth Jewell (born Richard White; December 17, 1962 – August 29, 2007) was an American security guard and police officer famous for his role in the events surrounding the Centennial Olympic Park bombing at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. While working as a security guard for AT&T, in connection with the Olympics, he discovered a backpack containing three pipe bombs on the park grounds. Jewell alerted police and helped evacuate the area before the bomb exploded, saving many people from injury or death. Initially hailed by the media as a hero, Jewell was later considered a suspect, before ultimately being cleared. Despite never being charged, he underwent a "trial by media", which took a toll on his personal and professional life. Jewell was eventually exonerated, and Eric Rudolph was later found to have been the bomber. In 2006, Governor Sonny Perdue publicly thanked Jewell on behalf of the State of Georgia for saving the lives of people at the Olympics. Jewell died on August 29, 2007, at age 44 due to heart failure from complications of diabetes.