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Officer

Larry Eugene Quinn

DeKalb County Police Department — Tucker, GA

Felonious

End of Watch February 4, 1973

Age 27

Tour of Duty 2 yrs 6 mo

The Vigil Panel 111 ›

Gender Male

Incident Media Service The Sacrifice Memorials 1 Department 32

Incident

Officer Larry Quinn was intentionally struck by a vehicle being operated by an escaped prisoner who was fleeing from several police officers in a high-speed chase that began in Norcross. Officer Quinn was armed with his shotgun and positioned outside his patrol vehicle, awaiting the arrival of the suspect vehicle at the intersection of Buford Highway and Briarwood Road. When the suspect saw the officer, he drove his vehicle into the officer, killing him. The car he had stolen was found wrecked two miles away. The 18-year-old suspect had recently escaped from the Georgia Industrial Institute near Alto, where he was serving a seven-year term for burglary. The next day he shot and killed a 59-year-old woman at a liquor store she managed near Griffin as he robbed her. A week later, he was captured by an Elbert County Deputy Sheriff near Elberton when he saw the suspect walking on Highway 72. The suspect was convicted of two counts of murder and sentenced to two life terms. He was released in 1993. In 1996 he walked into a skating rink in Winter Haven, Florida, and shot and killed a man who was dating his ex-girlfriend. He shot him in the face with a shotgun as he begged for his life in front of several terrified children. Responding officers chased him for 50 minutes through Bartow, Mulberry, and Lakeland, where he stopped his car and opened fire on eight deputies, wounding one. As the deputies returned fire, he shot and killed himself. Officer Quinn had served with the DeKalb County Police Department for 2-1/2 years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife and two daughters.

In Our Keeping

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Added to badge.nw: August 2, 2026
Last updated: August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Officer Quinn gave the DeKalb County Police Department 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the Tucker community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Officer Quinn.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Department DeKalb County Police Department

Type Police Department

Location Tucker, DeKalb County, GA

Platform Identity dcpd.dekalb.ga.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch February 4, 1973

Tour of Duty 2 yrs 6 mo

Age 27

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious

Weapon Automobile

The Sacrifice · Felonious

Larry is one of 15,743 officers killed feloniously in the United States, 57.1% of the 27,551 remembered there.

33,917 officers are remembered on this memorial. Each number below is one of them.

Compare against

Time

In 1973, 171 officers in the United States were killed feloniously, the 17th heaviest of 213 years on record. The heaviest was 1921, with 248.

Every year on record · United States

Who

Larry was 27. Of the 14,220 killed feloniously in the United States whose age is recorded, half were between 31 and 47; the middle age was 38. Larry had served 2.5 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.

Age at death

Where he stood among them

Age by years of service

III

When

February holds 7.4% of these deaths in the United States; December holds the most, 9.4%. Sundays: 15.2%.

By month

By day of the week

How

Felonious deaths account for 57.1% of all 27,551 deaths in the United States, the most common cause. The weapon recorded was automobile, in 4.9% of these deaths.

Every cause

Weapons recorded