LITTLE ROCK — Before the popularity of the television series CSI, Gary Morgan Lawrence had a love for crime-scene investigating. Serving 20 years as a forensic criminalist and later as a firearms expert for the state Crime Laboratory, Lawrence dedicated his life to his career, despite suffering several diseases, said his wife, Mary Lawrence.
Gary Lawrence died Sunday from a heart attack at his home in Bryant.
He was 59.
Born April 2, 1951, in Portland, Maine, to Frank and Helen Lawrence, he was the oldest of three siblings.
Lawrence graduated from South Portland High School in 1970 and worked part time as a police officer in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, his sister Debra Moore said.
In 1972, the U.S. Army drafted him, and he was stationed in Korea for 13 months. He was transferred to Fort Knox, Ky., to work in small-arms repair as a helicopter mechanic. He also took more than 600 hours in courses studying weaponry and forensics, his wife said.
Mary Lawrence said they met while he was at Fort Knox and married on June 21, 1977. Gary Lawrence has four children, two from a previous marriage.
From 1979-83, he was a criminal investigation division agent working on felony crimes that were of interest to the Army, his wife said.
“He worked the crime scenes, sometimes he would go to the autopsies to take pictures and document, take evidence, do investigations on crime,” she said.
He was transferred to Fairbanks, Alaska, for two years while working as an agent and was discharged on medical disability for acute asthma in 1983.
In 1987, he graduated from Eastern Kentucky University. Throughout his life, he earned four degrees from various colleges, including a bachelor’s degree in forensic science, his wife said.
After graduation, Lawrence was hired at Arkansas’ state Crime Laboratory as a forensic criminalist, his wife said.
Lawrence collected and examined evidence for cases throughout the state for crimes ranging from hit-and-run accidents to homicides, often testifying in court, his wife said. A lifetime member of the National Rifle Association, his knowledge of guns allowed him to become a firearms expert for the laboratory, which meant he re-created crime scenes to figure out how weapons were used, his wife said.
Lawrence also worked for the association teaching concealed-carry courses throughout the state. An avid hunter, he taught hunting-education classes for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, his wife said.
However, severe health problems eventually affected his career, his wife said.
She said after being treated for asthma, he developed diabetes and stomach problems.
A massive stroke in January 2007, which caused memory loss, loss of feeling in his right arm and some speech loss, forced him to retire, his wife said.
In the summer of 2009, both of his legs were amputated below the knee from complications from diabetes and vascular disease, his wife said. In recent months, he suffered a heart attack and renal failure, causing him to undergo dialysis three times a week, she said.
Gary Lawrence had a dry sense of humor, but it was rarely seen once he retired, his wife said.
“He was doing OK until they told him he couldn’t work anymore. From then on, he was so sad. He never smiled ... his job meant everything to him,” Mary Lawrence said. “When you go from being an intelligent, productive human being to [confined to] a chair and being taken care of, there’s not much to smile about.”
Mary Lawrence said the best memories with her husband were during the first year of their marriage.
“We had a motorcycle at the time, and we’d go on picnics, ride around in the country and talk,” she said. “That was the best year of my life.”
Arkansas, Pages 16 on 07/28/2010