Man falsely accused of Olympic Park bombing has died

Richard Jewell, the man wrongly accused of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing in 1996 has died. Jewell died in his home in West Georgia of natural causes. He was 44 years old.

Richard Jewell was the security guard at Centennial Olympic Park who discovered the backpack with the bomb. He evacuated the area, but still one woman dies and approximately 100 people were injured.

Jewell endured an eight-day media frenszy after the Atlanta-Journal Constitution called him the focus of the investigation. In 2006, Governor Sonny Perdue honored Jewell with a proclamation. Jewell appreciated the gesture:

"Ten years ago, I was falsely portrayed to the world as some type of abnormal person who was likely guilty of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing. Today, you honored by correcting this historical record."