Pre-Trial Hearing Toby Bowden Case Newnan Georgia

Name: Pre-Trial Hearing Toby Bowden Case Newnan Georgia
Start: 2026-01-13T08:00:00-05:00
Location: Coweta County Government Superior Court

Schedule

Tue, 13 Jan, 2026 at 08:00 am

UTC-05:00

Location

Coweta County Government Superior Court | Newnan, GA

📢 ATTENTION EVERY FIRST RESPONDER, TOW OPERATOR, PUBLIC SAFETY ADVOCATE, AND COMMUNITY MEMBER
The pre-trial hearing for Toby Bowden vs. Christopher Thornton is scheduled for:
📅 January 13, 2026
🕣 8:30 AM
📍 Coweta County Superior Court – Newnan, Georgia
We need EVERY FIRST RESPONDER and allied support personnel present in that courtroom to show the same strength, unity, and solidarity we showed at Toby’s funeral and memorial. Your presence matters. Not as a crowd. As a signal that we will no longer allow first responders to be struck down by reckless, distracted, or impaired drivers without accountability.
🛑 WHAT HAPPENED
On March 15, 2023, while assisting in clearing a crash on Interstate 85 northbound near the U.S. 29 exit in Coweta County, 49-year-old tow truck operator and Marine veteran Toby Bowden was struck and killed by a vehicle that was coming through the scene. At about 7:00 AM Toby was standing in the left lane as part of the emergency response when a vehicle driven by Christopher Thornton, who was allegedly speeding and lost control while trying to avoid emergency vehicles, hit and killed Toby at the scene. A sheriff’s deputy standing nearby was also injured but survived.
Thornton was arrested and charged with multiple serious offenses, including:
• Vehicular homicide
• Violation of Georgia’s Move Over Law
• Reckless driving
• Driving under the influence
• Failure to maintain lanes
• Driving too fast for conditions
…among other charges tied to the fatal collision.
🛠 WHY THIS MATTERS
This was not just an accident. It was the preventable death of a first responder — a Marine, a fiancé, a father figure, someone dedicated to helping others — killed because fellow drivers refused to slow down, pay attention, or obey simple safety laws.
We have seen this story too many times across the country — first responders, tow operators, fire, EMS, law enforcement tragically taken on our own roads simply doing our jobs. In 2023 alone, data tracking struck-by responder fatalities lists Toby as one of the responders killed while working crash scenes.
📣 WHY YOU NEED TO BE THERE
Your presence on January 13 sends a message to:
✔ Coweta County Superior Court
✔ Local and state lawmakers
✔ The community at large
✔ The families of first responders everywhere
That we are sick and tired. Sick and tired of losing teammates to distracted drivers and impaired drivers. Sick and tired of roadway violence being treated as “just one of those things.” Sick and tired of weak enforcement and legal lethargy.
We deserve real accountability.
Real consequences.
Real change.
🪶 HONOR TOBY. STAND WITH THE LIVING.
Be there. Bring your trucks, your boots, your grief, your determination — your voice.
📅 January 13, 2026
🕣 8:30 AM
📍 Coweta County Superior Court – Newnan, GA
IF YOU ARE BRINGING A TOW TRUCK PLEASE LET US KNOW SO WILSON CAN LET NEWNAN POLICE KNOW FOR TRAFFIC CONTROL ARRANGEMENTS.
Lets pack out Newnan for Toby and get the message out loud and clear that we are done with little to no accountability and that first responder lives matter !
#JusticeForTobyBowden #MoveOverSaveLives #FirstResponderSafety #GeorgiaFirstResponders #CowetaCounty #NewnanGA #TowOperatorSafety #ResponderStruckBy #EndDistractedDriving #EndImpairedDriving #RoadsideSafety #SupportFirstResponders #EMS #Firefighters #LawEnforcement #LegalAccountability