William A. Gwatney (August 26, 1959 – August 13, 2008) was an American politician who served as the State Chair of the Democratic Party of Arkansas. He had previously served as a State Senator for ten years and as the financial chair of Mike Beebe's campaign for Governor of Arkansas in 2006. Gwatney was selected as a superdelegate at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, but was assassinated before the convention.

Death

On August 13, 2008, Gwatney was shot three times by Timothy Dale Johnson, who entered Democratic Party headquarters in Little Rock, Arkansas. Gwatney was taken to a hospital, but died later that day. The gunman had said he wanted to speak with Gwatney about volunteering, but sidestepped his assistant when she said he was busy. After the shooting, the gunman fled the scene in his truck and led police on a 30 mi chase out of Little Rock. Johnson was killed by police after a PIT maneuver forced him off the road into a field near Sheridan. No motive was discovered, except Johnson quitting his job at a Target retail store earlier that day.

Honors

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR) Athletic Department posthumously inducted Gwatney into their Hall of Fame during a ceremony prior to the tip-off of the men's basketball game vs. New Orleans on February 26, 2009.