her journalists could be forced to reveal their sources.

Jewell's estate continued

to press the case even after Jewell's death but in July 2011 all of its claims were
ultimately rejected by the Georgia Court of Appeals. The Court concluded that
"because the articles in their entirety were substantially true at the time they
were published—even though the investigators' suspicions were ultimately deemed
unfounded—they cannot form the basis of a defamation action."[20]nvestigation and
the media
Early news reports lauded Jewell as a hero for helping to evacuate the area after
he spotted the suspicious package. Three days later, The Atlanta Journal-
Constitution revealed

In October 1996, the investigating US Attorney, Kent Alexander, in an extremely

unusual act, sent Jewell a letter formally clearing him, stating "based on the
evidence developed to date ... Richard Jewell is not considered a target of the
federal criminal investigation into the bombing on July 27, 1996, at Centennial
Olympic Park in Atlanta".[11]