COWETA COUNTY, Ga. — A Coweta County jury found a Newnan gun store owner guilty of murder on Feb. 11 in connection with the 2024 shooting death of his girlfriend. The shooting happened as a community event was winding down in downtown Newnan.
William Brannon Owens, 40, was convicted of felony murder and multiple other charges following a seven-day trial on the death of 28-year-old Olivia Robinson, said Herb Cranford, district attorney of Coweta Judicial Circuit.
Owens was sentenced to life in prison.
The conviction stems from a shooting on Sept. 20, 2024, at Oz Tactical in downtown Newnan.
Coweta Judicial Circuit Superior Court Judge W. Travis Sakrison sentenced Owens to serve life in prison with the possibility of parole, followed by an additional 15 years.
Robinson was found dead from a single gunshot wound to the face while Owens was intoxicated, police said.
The shooting happened at about 9:17 p.m. during the Fall Art Walk event in downtown Newnan. When Newnan Police Department officers arrived at the store, they found Owens weeping over Robinson’s body in a back office.
Owens, who appeared visibly intoxicated, told investigators that Robinson had shot herself while he was asleep. The two had been dating for several months.
Evidence presented during the trial contradicted the claim that the death was a suicide. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation autopsy determined Robinson’s manner of death was homicide and noted she was shot from a distance of 12 to 18 inches. Firearms analysis further confirmed that Owens’ Glock 19 was the weapon that killed Robinson. The firearm was recovered in the same office where Owens had been sleeping.
Toxicology reports showed that Owens was heavily intoxicated on the night of the incident. A blood draw taken nearly eight hours after the shooting revealed a blood alcohol content of .157. Prosecutors stated this indicated his BAC at the time of the shooting was likely three or four times the legal limit to operate a motor vehicle.
The analysis also found a significant amount of diazepam, the generic form of Valium, in his system along with other prescription drugs.
A 16-year-old employee who was working at the store that night testified about Owens’ behavior before the shooting. Owens reportedly decided to sleep in the back office around 8 p.m. and gave the juvenile a Glock 43 handgun to wear on his hip while manning the store. Shortly after, Owens radioed the boy to bring him a Glock 19 from a nearby desk.
The teenager testified that when he later returned to the office to ask Owens a question, Owens woke up and pointed the gun at him before realizing who he was and passing out again.
Six customers were in the store at the time of the shot. Minutes before the shooting, a customer inquired about the price of a rifle displayed for sale. Robinson took the rifle into the back office to consult Owens on the cost. Witnesses in the store reported hearing a gunshot seconds later.
When the teenage employee checked the office several minutes after the noise, he discovered Robinson dead on the floor and Owens appearing to be asleep.
In addition to the murder charge, Owens was also convicted of two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, three counts of involuntary manslaughter, discharging a firearm under the influence, reckless conduct, pointing a pistol at another, furnishing a pistol to a minor and two counts of possession of firearm during commission of a felony.
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