Man Sentenced After Attempted Murder-Suicide Over Losing His Job Leaves Girlfriend Dead

Christopher Bullock was found guilty on December 5 of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during commission of a felony. He was sentenced to life in the Georgia Department of Corrections without the possibility of parole.

Prosecutors detailed the October 5 murder of Tammy Cropper inside the apartment she shared with Bullock in Rossville, Georgia, arguing in court that she was shot multiple times in their bedroom before the suspect “shot himself in the head in an attempt to take his own life,” per True Crime News.

Both of them were reportedly found by Cropper’s seven-year-old grandson when he came home from school. The Rossville Police Department and Georgia Bureau of Investigation partnered on the investigation, according to a press release from the Lookout Mountain Judicial District Attorney’s Office.

Once on the scene, investigators were able to recover the gun used in both shootings, which they say belonged to Bullock. Survillance footage confirmed that no one else entered or exited the apartment on the day of the shooting. Bullock also confessed to officers on the scene, per the district attorney’s office.

As for a motive behind the failed murder-suicide, according to the indictment, Bullock had a “lengthy history of failed romantic relationships and had recently been terminated from his employment.”

But it wasn’t just the loss of his job that allegedly pushed Bullock to the point of attempting to kill both his girlfriend and himself. According to the prosecution, Cropper had told him just days before the shooting that he “needed to start providing more financial assistance to the household or their relationship would end.”

Suggesting at least some forethought went into the shootings, the prosecution revealed to the jury that Bullock allegedly sent what was described as “goodbye” messages to friends and family where he revealed his plans to kill both Cropper and himself.

According to the DA’s press release, the jury in Walker County returned a guilty verdict after just 20 minutes of deliberation.

“I want to thank the GBI and our amazing prosecution team for relentlessly pursuing justice for Ms. Cropper and her family,” said DA Clayton M. Fuller. “This prosecution should send a clear message: you take a life in our community then you’ll spend the rest of yours in prison.”