Kathy Scruggs Wiki: On December 13, 2019, the Clint Eastwood-directed film Richard Jewell was released, and it has since generated a lot of public discussions, particularly about Olivia Wilde’s portrayal of journalist Kathy Scruggs in the film. If you remember this historical detail, Richard Jewell was the security guard who prevented fatalities from the 1996 explosion at Centennial Olympic Park.
However, Jewell was demonized until he was exonerated of all charges after Atlanta-Journal Constitution reporter Kathy Scruggs revealed that the FBI had initially looked at Jewell as a suspect. While Scruggs is portrayed poorly in the film, Jewell is hailed as the hero he is, which some journalists find objectionable. Our Kathy Scruggs page describes this tenacious journalist who persisted in pursuing a story despite all obstacles.
Kathy Scruggs Wiki Summary
| Name | Kathleen Bentley Scruggs |
| famous as | Journalist |
| Sibling | Lewis Scruggs Jr. |
| Parents | Nancy Bentley Scruggs, Lewis Scruggs Sr. |
| Nationality | American |
| Job | Journalist/ Reporter |
| Alumni | Queens College |
| Age | 42 Years |
| Date of Birth | September 26, 1958 |
| Death Date | September 2, 2001 |
| Death Place | Woodstock, Georgia |
| Hometown | Athens, Georgia |
| Worked for | Atlanta-Journal Constitution |
| Cause of Death | Drug Overdose |
Kathy Scruggs Wiki: The Atlanta Journal-Kathleen Constitution’s “Kathy” Scruggs broke the news that the FBI was looking into security officer Richard Jewell as a potential suspect in the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics bombing. The headline of the piece, “FBI Suspects ‘Hero’ Guard May Have Planted Bomb,” caused a media frenzy that Jewell never really recovered from, even after being exonerated of the charges.
She and her older brother by ten years, Lewis Scruggs Jr., were the offspring of a well-known family in Athens, Georgia when they were both born on September 26, 1958. Their father, World War II veteran Lewis “Bubber” Scruggs Sr., was a co-founder of the Athens Insurers Inc. In 1953. At the University of Georgia, Kathy’s father pursued journalism studies as well. Eight years after Kathy’s drug overdose death in 2001, he went away in 2009. In Cherokee County, Georgia, Mrs. Scruggs passed away.
Prior to her passing in 2015, Nancy Bentley Scruggs, Kathy Scruggs’ mother, was active in Athens’ humanitarian and social circles. Lewis Jr., who carries on his father’s heritage in the insurance industry, together with his wife and children, is the only survivor of Kathy, Nancy, and Lewis Sr.
Those who knew Kathy Scruggs, including her friends and family, recall her as a wild young woman with a rebellious and adventurous side. Instead of enrolling at UGA like her parents and brother, she made the decision to attend Queens University (formerly Queens College) in Charlotte, North Carolina.
In the 1990s, Scruggs was renowned for her accurate reporting, close ties to the local police enforcement, and her heavy partying habits, which were made worse after she sparked the media backlash against Jewell.
In 2001, Kathy Scruggs overdosed on morphine and passed away. The coroner at the time stated that it was impossible to ascertain if the overdose was accidental or suicidal. But throughout the years, a number of acquaintances and coworkers have said that she never ever recovered from what occurred with Jewell.
“She was never at peace or at rest with this story. It haunted her until her last breath,” her former colleague Tony Kiss told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a 2019 feature about her. “It crushed her like a Junebug on the sidewalk.”
But even when threatened with legal action over the piece, Kathy Scruggs refused to say where she got the information that Jewell was a suspect. When she passed away, she was in danger of going to jail; however, the Georgia Court of Appeals eventually found that “the articles in their whole were essentially truthful at the time they were published,” clearing the Journal-Constitution.
However, Kathy Scruggs’ firing occurred ten years after her passing. Her friends have long thought that the strain of the tale led to her deteriorating health. The Journal-Constitution was informed by longtime friend Lisa Griffin that she spoke with Scruggs on the phone just before her passing.
“It was like a vacuum,” she said. “Her soul was gone. She was so empty.”
In the 2019 Clint Eastwood film about the bombing, Kathy Scruggs was portrayed as having slept with sources for scoops, something the people who knew her took great umbrage with.
Richard Jewell Reporting
The bombing at Centennial Olympic Park in July 1996 would have resulted in hundreds of fatalities if Richard Jewell hadn’t been there.
He was posted to the open park as part of his responsibilities as a security guard for the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.
Jewell was strolling around the park when she came across a bag that had three pipe bombs. Before the bomb squad came, he called the police and helped them evacuate the area.
13 minutes after the area had been evacuated, the bomb exploded, leaving one person dead and more than a hundred injured.
Later, a cameraman who had been covering the tragedy passed away from a heart attack.
Jewell was initially hailed as a hero for his part in stopping the attack and saving numerous lives. Three days later, however, the AJC published an article by Kathy Scruggs and Ron Martz in which they revealed that the FBI was investigating Jewell as a possible suspect.
According to Scruggs and Martz’s inquiry, the FBI searched his house and possessions based on the “lone bomber” profile, and put him under surveillance.
Jewell’s personal and professional lives were negatively impacted by the ensuing media trial.
He was cleared of all accusations, nevertheless, and once more lauded as a hero. Eric Rudolph was identified as the actual Olympic Park bomber.
Jewell sued all the implicated media sources, including the AJC, for libel after his acquittal. Wikia of Kathy Scruggs.
