Why did Richard Jewell drop his lawsuit against Piedmont?
CAROL WOODFORDAugust 26, 1997 GMT ATLANTA (AP) _ Piedmont College has agreed to pay former Olympic bombing suspect Richard Jewell to drop his lawsuit against the school where he once worked. Jewell had charged that college officials slandered him in statements to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
How much did NBC pay to settle the Jewell case?
Senators Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) called the director of the FBI and several news media representatives to testify about the leaks and subsequent reports on the FBI’s investigation. In early December, NBC reached an out of court settlement with Jewell for an amount reported by the Wall Street Journal as more than $500,000.
What did Richard Jewell do?
Richard Allensworth Jewell (born Richard White; December 17, 1962 – August 29, 2007) was an American security guard and law enforcement officer who alerted police during the Centennial Olympic Park bombing at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.
Why is Jewell being investigated by the federal government?
The Journal first reported in late July that Jewell had become the focus of the Federal investigation. L. Lin Wood, one of Jewell’s Attorneys, said that the current lawsuits as well as the earlier settlements are designed not just to compensate Jewell for personal injury, but to “bring a measure of accountability to the named parties.”
How much did Richard Jewell get in settlements?
$500,000There are still some holes in this case." Even though NBC stood by its story, the network agreed to pay Jewell $500,000.
Did Richard Jewell sue for defamation?
Jewell subsequently filed multiple libel lawsuits against news organizations and other entities for incorrectly casting him as a suspect.
Did Richard Jewell sue 60 minutes?
0:0114:42Richard Jewell: The 1996 60 Minutes interview - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipWhen we caught up with Jewell this week in Atlanta he said that he and his attorneys were preparingMoreWhen we caught up with Jewell this week in Atlanta he said that he and his attorneys were preparing to sue among others the Atlanta journal-constitution.
How did Richard Jewell get cleared?
In October 1996, after exhaustive probes suggested Richard Jewell could not have planted the bomb based on his whereabouts that night, the U.S. Justice Department formally cleared him as a suspect in the Centennial Park bombing investigation. But the damage to his reputation was irrevocable.
Who planted the bomb at the Atlanta Olympics?
It was the first of four bombings committed by Eric Rudolph. Security guard Richard Jewell discovered the bomb before detonation and began clearing spectators out of the park.
Was Eric Rudolph ever caught?
On May 31, 2003, Rudolph was arrested by police officer J.S. Postell while rummaging through a trash bin behind a rural grocery store in Murphy, North Carolina. Rudolph pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from the four bombings. He is currently serving multiple life sentences without the possibility of parole.
How much did Jewell settle for?
In early December, NBC reached an out of court settlement with Jewell for an amount reported by the Wall Street Journal as more than $500,000. In late January, Jewell’s attorneys announced a second settlement, this time with CNN.
What happened to Richard Jewell?
Jewell case fallout includes lawsuits, settlements, hearings. GEORGIA–Almost six months after a Federal Bureau of Investigation leak identified him as the number-one suspect in last summer’s bombing in Centennial Olympic Park, Richard Jewell remains at the center of controversies over the handling of the investigation.
Who is the attorney for Jewell?
L. Lin Wood, one of Jewell’s Attorneys, said that the current lawsuits as well as the earlier settlements are designed not just to compensate Jewell for personal injury, but to “bring a measure of accountability to the named parties.”.
Who is the owner of the Atlanta Journal and Constitution?
Jewell in late January also filed a defamation suit against Cox Enterprises Inc., the owner of the Atlanta Journal and Constitution. The Journal first reported in late July that Jewell had become the focus of the Federal investigation.
Who is Richard Jewell?
For the architect, see Richard Roach Jewell. Richard Allensworth Jewell (born Richard White; December 17, 1962 – August 29, 2007) was an American security guard and law enforcement officer who alerted police during the Centennial Olympic Park bombing at the 1996 Summer Olympics in ...
Who sent Richard Jewell a letter?
On October 26, 1996, the US Attorney in Atlanta, Kent Alexander, sent Jewell a letter saying "based on the evidence developed to date ... Richard Jewell is not considered a target of the federal criminal investigation into the bombing on July 27, 1996, at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta". The letter did not include an apology, but in a separate statement issued by Alexander, the U.S. Justice Department regretted the leaking of the investigation.
Why did Jewell place a rose at the Olympic Park?
Jewell was chosen in keeping with the parade's theme of "Unsung Heroes". On each anniversary of the bombing until his illness and eventual death , he would privately place a rose at the Centennial Olympic Park scene where spectator Alice Hawthorne died.
What did Jewell do before the bombing?
He alerted law enforcement and helped evacuate the area before the bomb exploded, probably saving many people from injury or death. Initially hailed by the media as a hero, Jewell was soon considered a suspect by the FBI and local law enforcement based on scientific profiling.
Why did Richard Jewell sue the Atlanta Journal-Constitution?
Jewell sued the Atlanta Journal-Constitution because, according to Jewell, the paper's headline ("FBI suspects 'hero' guard may have planted bomb") "pretty much started the whirlwind". In one article, the Atlanta Journal compared Richard Jewell's case to that of serial killer Wayne Williams.
How did Jewell die?
Jewell had been diagnosed withhhh diabetes in February 2007 and suffered kidney failure and other medical problems related to his diagnosis in the following months. His wife, Dana, found him dead on the floor of their bedroom when she came home from work on August 29, 2007; he was 44. An autopsy found the cause of death to be severe heart disease with diabetes and related complications as a contributing factor.
Why did Jewell and other security guards begin clearing the immediate area?
During a Jack Mack and the Heart Attack performance, Jewell and other security guards began clearing the immediate area so that a bomb squad could investigate the suspicious package.
What happened to Tom Brokaw and Jewell?
Jewell and Bryant are mounting a sustained assault on some of the nation's largest media companies. They have already taken on NBC and anchor Tom Brokaw, wresting the extraordinary cash payment to avert a possible defamation lawsuit. The network didn't issue an apology, ...
Who was the most famous security guard in 1997?
Jan. 3, 1997 1:22 am ET. Print. Text. ATLANTA -- Richard Jewell, the world's most famous security guard, has recently racked up two big wins: a very public statement by the FBI that he didn't plant the bomb that shattered the 1996 Olympics, and a very quiet, six-figure settlement from NBC, whose star news anchor had landed ...
Did Bryant and Jewell take lunch breaks?
Some days, Mr. Bryant would give Mr. Jewell a ride home and let him borrow his radar detector. They often took lunch breaks together at a nearby Chick-Fil-A and zapped imaginary aliens in the "Galaxians" video game at the Gold Mine arcade.
What happened to Richard Jewell?
Richard Jewell went from hero to villain within a matter of days after he discovered a deadly pipe bomb while working as a security guard at the 1996 Summer Olympics. Jewell came across a backpack under a bench in Centennial Park and immediately alerted officials to the suspicious package.
When was Richard Jewell sworn in?
Richard Jewell, left, and his attorney Lin Wood are sworn in on Capitol Hill Wednesday July 30, 1997. Photo: AP
How did Jewell die?
Jewell died in 2007. He reportedly had been suffering from health complications stemming from diabetes, the New York Times reported.
What did the New York Post call Jewell?
Jewell was then destroyed in the media. The New York Post called him both "a Village Rambo" and "a fat, failed former sheriff's deputy,” according to Vanity Fair. Meanwhile TV Host Jay Leno said,"What is it about the Olympic Games that brings out big, fat stupid guys?".
How did Jewell's discovery save lives?
His discovery saved countless lives as he and other security guards and law enforcement were able to begin clearing the area before it detonated. The park was jammed with people watching a concert, but Jewell and others were able to get attendees away from the benches.
Did Jewell sue Piedmont College?
He also sued Piedmont College after its president called Jewell a "badge-wearing zealot,” according to a 1997 Washington Post article and the school also settled for an unspecified amount. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution was the only defendant that didn't offer Jewell a settlement.
When was Jewell exonerated?
Jewell was finally exonerated completely after Rudolph’s 2005 plea deal and was even in the courtroom when the plea was entered, though he didn't make any comment, the Associated Press reported at the time.
Who played Jewell in the movie?
Jewell, portrayed by the brilliant Paul Walter Hauser in Eastwood’s film, was the epitome of the cop-wannabe; a former sheriff’s deputy and failed campus police officer who desperately sought to find a place within the law enforcement profession.
What was the focus on Jewell as the Centennial Park bomber in 1996?
The focus on Jewell as the Centennial Park bomber in 1996 was confirmation bias on steroids. In the summer of 1996, I was a young FBI SWAT agent assigned to the Bureau’s Brooklyn-Queens metropolitan New York City resident agency.
Why did Ben and Jerry give away ice cream?
Ben and Jerry's ice cream is stored in a cooler at an event where founders Jerry Greenfield and Ben Cohen gave away ice cream to bring attention to police reform at the U.S. Supreme Court on May 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. The two are urging the ending of police qualified immunity.
Where was Rudolph captured?
Two years after the Atlanta Olympics, I was assigned to the FBI’s elite Hostage Rescue Team and deployed to Nantahala National Forest in North Carolina as part of a manhunt for Rudolph. He was ultimately captured near there in 2003 and subsequently confessed to the Centennial Park bombing.
Who was the security guard in the 1996 Olympics?
But the staunchly conservative director – an outlier in Hollywood – has earned some deserved Oscar buzz for his depiction of a wholly flawed investigation, possibly beset by confirmation bias, brought by the FBI against the titular subject, 1996 Atlanta Olympics security guard Richard Jewell.
Did the FBI investigate the 9/11 attacks?
It wasn’t. Notably, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks when the FBI opened a case into a series of mailed letters containing anthrax spores, the agency’s investigation zeroed in on the wrong man.
Overview
Media portrayals
Richard Jewell, a biographical drama film, was released in the United States on December 13, 2019. The film was directed and produced by Clint Eastwood. It was written by Billy Ray, based on the 1997 article "American Nightmare: The Ballad of Richard Jewell," by Marie Brenner, and the book The Suspect: An Olympic Bombing, the FBI, the Media, and Richard Jewell, the Man Caught in the Middle (2019) by Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen. Jewell is played by Paul Walter Hauser.
Early life
Jewell was born Richard White in Danville, Virginia, the son of Bobi, an insurance claims coordinator, and Robert Earl White, who worked for Chevrolet. Richard's birth parents divorced when he was four. When his mother later married John Jewell, an insurance executive, his stepfather adopted him.
Olympic bombing accusation
Centennial Olympic Park was designed as the "town square" of the Olympics, and thousands of spectators had gathered for a late concert and merrymaking. Sometime after midnight, July 27, 1996, Eric Robert Rudolph, a terrorist who would later bomb a lesbian nightclub and two abortion clinics, planted a green backpack containing a fragmentation-laden pipe bomb under a bench. Jewell was working as a security guard for the event. He discovered the bag and alerted Georgia …
Subsequent life, career and public appearances
Jewell worked in various law enforcement jobs, including as a police officer in Pendergrass, Georgia. He worked as a deputy sheriff in Meriwether County, Georgia, until his death. He also gave speeches at colleges. On July 30, 1997, Jewell testified before a subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives in which he called for an independent investigation into methods used by FBI agents during their investigation of him. He appeared in Michael Moore's 1997 film The Big One. …
Libel cases
After he was dropped as a suspect, Jewell filed libel suits against the FBI, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, CNN, the New York Post, and Piedmont College.
Jewell sued the Atlanta Journal-Constitution because, according to Jewell, the paper's headline ("FBI suspects 'hero' guard may have planted bomb") "pretty much started the whirlwind." In one article, the Journal-Constitution compared Jewell's case to that of serial killer Wayne Williams.
Death
Jewell had been diagnosed with diabetes in February 2007 and suffered kidney failure and other medical problems related to his diagnosis in the following months. His wife, Dana, found him dead on the floor of their bedroom when she came home from work on August 29, 2007; he was 44. An autopsy found the cause of death to be severe heart disease with diabetes and related complicati…
See also
• Centennial Olympic Park bombing