Cop Killer Enters Plea in Murder of Cobb State Trooper

Patch Staff Report

On Monday, Fulton County District Attorney Paul L. Howard, Jr., announced a conviction by guilty plea in the murder case against a man charged with killing a Georgia State Trooper, Chadwick "Chad" LeCroy.

During plea proceedings last Friday, 33-year-old Gregory Favors pleaded guilty as indicted to charges of Murder, Felony Murder, Aggravated Assault on a Peace Officer, Theft by Taking, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon and Fleeing and Attempting to Elude in connection with the December 27, 2010 shooting death of East Cobb's LeCroy, 38.  

LeCroy was shot and killed after attempting to pull Favors over on a traffic stop for a broken tail light. Favors led the trooper on a brief chase from Cobb County and eventually crashed the vehicle he was driving near the intersection of Hightower Road and St. Paul Avenue in Atlanta.

As LeCroy approached the wrecked vehicle to assist the defendant - never drawing his weapon - Favors fired three shots, striking the trooper once in the neck. LeCroy died at the scene. Favors, meantime, stole the trooper’s vehicle and then abandoned it a few blocks away. He was arrested a short time later not far from the crime scene.

At the time of the shooting, Favors, a repeat offender with a long criminal history including 19 arrests and 10 felony convictions, was out on bond for another crime. Following his indictment for LeCroy’s murder, the State filed notice to seek the Death Penalty against Favors. However, after recent in-depth meetings with LeCroy’s widow Keisha, the State agreed to withdraw that notice.

In addition to his wife, LeCroy left behind two sons, Bret; a brother; two half-brothers; and his mother, and stepfather.

“Normally, when an officer is killed in the line of duty under the circumstances outlined in this matter, the State would proceed with a Death Penalty prosecution regardless of the length of time involved in the disposition of the case,” said Howard in a news release. “In this case, however, Mrs. LeCroy and her family asked us to consider a Life without Parole sentence in an effort to shield her family, particularly her young sons, from a lengthy trial and appeals process typically associated with a Death Penalty prosecution. Representatives from the Georgia State Patrol also agreed to support the LeCroy family after having their own internal discussions about the case. Based on the wishes of Mrs. LeCroy and the Georgia State Patrol, we thought it appropriate to follow their request,” says Howard.   

Following his guilty plea, Favors was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole plus 55 years consecutively. The sentence, levied by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Shawn LaGrua, ensures that Favors will never be released from prison.