The Arkansas Project

Gwatney Killing Investigation ‘Inconclusive’

By David Kinkade - November 20, 2008 11:13 am

Bill Gwatney

A police investigation into the August 2008 murder of Arkansas Democratic Party chairman Bill Gwatney in Little Rock was closed today, the AP’s Andrew Demillo reports, with no conclusion as to the killer’s motive:

“I wish there was a conclusion, but there wasn’t,” said Lt. Terry Hastings, a spokesman for the Little Rock Police Department.

Authorities discovered a note with a telephone number and the word “Gwatney” on it in Johnson’s home, but the report found that it was a telephone number for Gwatney Towing Company in Jacksonville, which is no longer in business. The note also listed other numbers for local towing companies, the report said.

The FBI also reviewed the history on Johnson’s computer, and found that he visited Wikipedia, Yahoo and news sites the day before the shooting. Johnson also visited the Web site of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms that day, the report said.

The killer, Timothy Dale Johnson, was shot and killed by police following a car chase ending in Grant County.

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