Earl William “Billy” Gunn passed away on Sunday, March 9, 2025 at the age of 71. Billy was born in Atlanta on March 8, 1954. He attended Christ the King and then Westminster, graduating high school in 1972. After graduation he left for Dartmouth, but it didn’t take him long to decide that he did not care for the climate in New Hampshire. So he moved back to Georgia, worked on a farm, and after a few days of fixing barbed wire fences decided to give higher education a second chance. Billy called the Dean of Admissions at the University of Georgia, talked his way in, and started taking classes immediately. He stayed in Athens until graduating from law school in 1979. While in law school he worked at Russell McWhorter & Adamson in Winder. It was during this time that a secretary at the firm set him up on a blind date with his future wife, Kathi Rutledge Gunn. Three weeks later they were engaged. In 1982, Billy took a job at Downey Cleveland & Parker, and he and Kathi moved to Marietta where they began raising their two children, Sara Elizabeth and Addison. He then joined Long, Weinberg, Ansley, & Wheeler in 1988 to work with his mentor, Sid Wheeler. In 1999, Billy founded Weinberg, Wheeler, Hudgins, Gunn & Dial with his friends Dave Dial and Skip Hudgins. Billy tried over 240 cases in 19 states, mostly on the defense side, and his clients trusted him with their most important and difficult matters. He thrived at trial and is a courtroom legend.
When not in front of a judge and jury, Billy was having fun with his friends and family. He especially loved hanging out with the Burden Burdon gang, playing golf, reading, listening to music, and watching Bulldogs and Falcons football with his children and grandson. He was also known to enjoy a cocktail or two. Billy was happiest at his home in Ellijay, but he loved traveling to the Caribbean, New Orleans, or anywhere with a casino. He was a storyteller, and was known to tell and then retell stories about his high school football team’s state championship, his first date with Kathi, and pretty much every case he ever tried. While Billy was intimidating to some (he got a kick out of their reaction and pretended not to understand why), those who knew him recognized that he had a big heart and was always willing to help out someone in need, whether family, friends, friends of friends, or animals.
Billy is survived by his wife of 45 years Kathi Rutledge Gunn, who he loved more than anything in the world; daughter Sara Elizabeth Gunn Marrone (Matthew) and grandson Billy; son William Addison Gunn (Marlene); mother Mary Guy Robinson Gunn; mother-in-law Sara Hendrix Rutledge; siblings Elizabeth Gunn Berry, Isabel Gunn Vann, and Roby Gunn; and numerous nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his father Neal Ellis Gunn, father-in-law Hugh Addison Rutledge, and sister Louise Gunn Neely.
A service will be held on Friday, March 28th at 11am at HM Patterson and Son- Arlington Chapel, 173 Allen Rd., NE, Sandy Springs, GA immediately followed by a reception. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to the ASPCA or any charity close to the heart.
