Nicholas Nic Crews, 34, was a social work case manager from Marietta, Georgia, who was shot while working at the Veterans Affairs clinic on East Church Street in Jasper on March 17, 2026. Investigators say a man who had come to the clinic for a walk-in mental health consultation opened fire inside the facility and struck Crews. He was rushed to a trauma hospital and died the next day from his injuries.

Authorities identified the suspected shooter as 51-year-old Lawrence Charles Michels of Jasper. After the indoor shooting, Michels left the building armed, encountered responding Jasper police officers and an armed civilian, and was struck in an exchange of gunfire; he was pronounced dead at the scene. No officers were reported injured and no additional suspects have been publicly identified. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was called in and the matter remains under active investigation; the file is expected to be forwarded to the Appalachian Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for review.

Crews had worked with veterans at the Jasper clinic for more than two years. Friends and relatives described him as compassionate and committed to helping others; he left behind his wife Alyssa, two young children, and a third child expected soon. Does anyone who knew Crews or was at the clinic that day have information to share?