Murder Charges In Police-Chase Crash That Killed Elderly Couple

PEACHTREE CORNERS, GA -- An alleged drug dealer who was running from police has been charged with murder in a January car crash that killed an elderly Gwinnett County couple.

A Gwinnett County grand jury last week handed down indictments on six counts of felony murder against Larry Thomas, 47, of Tennessee. Felony murder is the charge when someone commits a felony that leads to someone else's death, whether it was intentional or not.

Kryzysztof Krawczynski, 77, and his wife Elzbieta Gurtler-Krawczynski, 78, died at the scene of the crash, at Peachtree Parkway and Jay Bird Alley.

The police chase began at about 10:30 p.m. in Johns Creek and led into Gwinnett County. As police chased him, Thomas slammed into the vehicle being driven by Krawczynski.

His 18-year-old son was in the car with him and suffered a broken collarbone, police said.

Before last week's indictments, Thomas already faced charges of DUI, two counts of vehicular homicide, trafficking methamphetamine, trafficking morphine, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, possession of cocaine, possession of LSD and possessing a handgun during commission of a felony.

Teen Jesse Thomas faces the same drug and gun charges, but is not charged in the deaths of the Krawczynskis.

The couple was well-known in local Polish-American circles. Both were doctors. The husband had worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the wife had been employed by Emory University School of Medicine.

(Photo courtesy Gwinnett County Police)