Atlanta Police Department, Georgia
End of Watch Wednesday, November 3, 1971
Add to My HeroesJames Richard Greene
Officer Jim Greene, working a one-man unit, was assassinated while on patrol.
Officer Greene was taking a break and seated in his police van at a closed gas station when the incident occurred. The suspects, two Black Liberation Army members, approached the unsuspecting officer. While one asked him a question, the other shot him numerous times. They then stole the officer's service weapon and his badge to prove the deed to other members of the group.
One of the suspects was shot and killed in front of a grocery store by officers from the New York City Police Department and the FBI on Nov. 14, 1973.
The other suspect assumed another identity and blended back into society. He was able to avoid arrest for over twenty years. In 2001, while living in New York City with his live-in girlfriend, he was accused of molesting her daughter and arrested. The Atlanta Police Department was notified of his arrest after his true identity was discovered.
Atlanta's cold case detectives obtained enough evidence to charge him in connection with Officer Greene's murder on July 12, 2002. He was convicted of murder on October 13, 2003, and was sentenced to life in prison.
Officer Greene, a U.S. Army veteran, was survived by his parents and several siblings.
The Black Liberation Army was a violent, radical group that attempted to fight for independence from the United States government in the late 1960's and early 1970's. The BLA was responsible for the murders of more than 10 police officers around the country. They were also responsible for violent attacks around the country that left many police officers wounded.
Bio
- Age 27
- Tour Not available
- Badge Not available
- Military Veteran
Incident Details
- Cause Gunfire
- Weapon Handgun; .38 caliber
- Offender One killed; other sentenced to life
Most Recent Reflection
View all 26 ReflectionsRichard and I we’re friends, he working with APD, and me an X-ray student at Grady Memorial Hospital. I believe we met while he was either escorting a prisoner, or working in the hospital detention unit. He taught me a lot about being safe in Atlanta in the 67-69 time period. RIP Richard.
Major Ed Stevens, USA Retired
University of Alabama
March 2, 2022
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