East Point, Ga. – Friends and relatives packed the small chapel of a funeral home Tuesday to remember the 88-year-old woman killed in a shootout with plainclothes police who broke down the door of her home.
Kathryn Johnston was killed Nov. 21 when she confronted narcotics agents who authorities said had obtained a “no-knock” search warrant for her home after an informant allegedly bought drugs from a man there that afternoon.
Police said the agents identified themselves, but when they knocked down Johnston’s door, she shot at them, wounding three officers.
Some mourners at Tuesday’s service said they won’t feel at peace about Johnston’s death until police answer questions about why they believed drugs were being sold out of her house in northwest Atlanta.
“I’ve always thought from the beginning there was a mistake,” said JoAnne Trawick, a niece.
Family friend Kelly Hill remembered Johnston as a sharp, caring woman who was “like a mother” to her. Johnston never forgot birthdays, addresses or how much she spent at the grocery store each month, Hill said.
“She was the strongest person I’ve ever known,” Hill said in a tearful eulogy. “People would come in town to visit me, and I would say, ‘You’ve got to meet Miss Johnston. She’s a phenomenon.”‘
The FBI will lead the investigation into the shooting, Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington said Monday. Seven narcotics investigators and a police sergeant have been placed on paid leave until the inquiry is complete.
A family spokesman, the Rev. Markel Hutchins, said an informant’s statements to reporters that police told him to lie gave the Johnston family hope that the truth will come out.
