Wife of beloved Atlanta police officer makes first appearance charged with his murder
CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. - The wife of an Atlanta police officer sat in the Clayton County jail charged with murdering her husband.
Riverdale police say Tammare Lawrence shot and killed her husband, Atlanta Police Officer Stanley Lawrence as the 58-year-old sat on the living room couch early Wednesday morning.
Mrs. Lawrence had a first appearance Thursday morning before Magistrate Judge Salvia Smith. The judge revealed some new information in the case.
"Evidence suggests that you returned and shot Mr. Lawrence in the right shoulder with no exit wound. Stanley Lawrence succumbed to his wound in the living room of his home," she concluded.
The fatal shooting happened in the couple's home on Oak Valley Drive.
FOX 5 News has learned it was Mrs. Lawrence who dialed 911, clearly distraught.
"I need an ambulance right now, (crying)," the recording revealed.
When officers arrived they say the wife and mother was on her knees and crying. When investigators asked her what happened she would not tell them.
"I can't say," a police report indicated.
When authorities pressed the 49-year-old again, the wife and mother requested a lawyer before talking to the police. Officers did find a weapon on the living room table.
The chief says the couple had only been married about a year. Mrs. Lawrence's family told FOX 5 reporter Aungelique Proctor outside the courtroom she is not guilty of murder.
'WE ARE STUNNED...' ATLANTA'S POLICE CHIEF REACTS AFTER OFFICER SHOT, KILLED IN RIVERDALE
Officer Lawrence Stanley (Atlanta Police Department / Supplied)
The veteran officer's slaying has left his law enforcement colleagues and friends stunned.
"He was a giant of a man, 6-feet-8-inches, just so gentle, so heartwarming, everybody that I knew loved him, especially the kids," Atlanta Police Deputy Chief Terrell Griffin commented.
Officer Lawrence worked with children in the Police Athletic League where many say he had a huge impact.
“We go back, about 29 years. I remember Stanley when he was going through the academy. He had the type of personality that would light up a room," a former colleague and Chief of Spelman Security Moses Perdue recalled.
The judge told Mrs. Lawrence she would be held on no bond. Her primary hearing on the murder and aggravated assault charges was set for March 13.