Atlanta Police Department, Georgia
End of Watch Saturday, July 19, 1980
Add to My HeroesJames E. Richardson, Jr.
Sergeant James Richardson was shot and killed during a traffic stop at McDaniel and Peters Streets.
Sergeant Richardson, while undercover driving an unmarked car, had stopped the vehicle after witnessing the two occupants harassing a female gas station attendant.
After stopping the vehicle he spoke to the driver who had gotten out and as he returned to his car to run his license, the passenger got out and shot him. This was witnessed by the patrons of a restaurant across the street from where the stop occurred.
The vehicle they were driving was stolen from a couple they had abducted and robbed. The couple escaped, but not before being fired upon.
The shooter was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Sergeant Richardson was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran of the Vietnam War. He had served with the Atlanta Police Department for 10 years and was survived by his wife and daughter.
Bio
- Age 34
- Tour 10 years
- Badge 8003
- Military Veteran
Incident Details
- Cause Gunfire
- Weapon Handgun; .22 caliber
- Offender Sentenced to life imprisonment
Most Recent Reflection
View all 16 ReflectionsThank you all of you for your words of kindness and solidarity for my family and my grandfather. I was born in the 90s and never knew my grandfather, but I have never heard anything but good things about him. 45 years later his presence is missed every single day: his laugh, his cooking, the trips fishing, and his enduring zest for life that lives on in my mother.
I love you G-Pa; to the moon and back.
Geoffrey N. Smith
Granddaughter
April 3, 2025
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