We gather today, not for the purpose of grieving, but rather to celebrate the careers of, and to honor, applaud, and express our gratitude to, those members of the Knoxville bar who passed away in the last year.
Friday, the 18th of November 2022 | 3:00 PM | Supreme Court Courtroom
I N T R O D U C T I O N
Jason H Long, KBA President
W E L C O M E
Hon. Sharon G. Lee, Tennessee Supreme Court
R E M E M B R A N C E S
R E F L E C T I O N S O N G R I E F A N D G R I E V I N G
B E N E D I C T I O N
Rev Charles W B Fels
R E A D I N G O F T H E N A M E S T O L L I N G O F T H E B E L L
Michael L Debusk went to be with our Lord on August 11, 2022 Born to Albert and Inez Debusk on June 11, 1947, Mike grew up in Knoxville with two older sisters and an older brother After graduating UT Law School in 1972, he served our country as a Major Judge Advocate General in Germany While there, he married Helga Wesselsky and they had two children, Michael and Daniela In 1986, Mike began his private practice in Knoxville, and represented clients in Knox, Union, Claiborne, Anderson and Scott Counties for more than thirty-six years Mike is survived by his son, Michael J. Debusk (Ginger); daughter, Daniela Laws (R.A.); grandchildren, Elijah, Ethan and Elizabeth Debusk and Seth and Emily Laws, his dear nephew, Bill Hickman and his dearest friend and assistant of thirty-five years, Phyllis Faulkner
Each courthouse Mike visited became a happier environment, thanks to his jovial and positive personality He was the one who brought the donuts and made everyone laugh, while still zealously representing his clients He was the smile during a stressful docket, and whether you had known him five years or five minutes, you felt he was your lifelong friend Mike loved history and among those interests, admired and studied Churchill and Lincoln Lincoln once said, “The better part of one’s life consists of his friendships ” For those who were blessed to have known Mike as a friend, that is certainly the truth
Myron C Ely, age 81 and a lifetime resident of Knoxville, passed away peacefully at home on January 3, 2022 A graduate of West High School and University of Tennessee, Myron obtained his JD from the UT College of Law and was licensed in 1967 He was a veteran of the US Air Force, and member of the Air National Guard at McGhee Tyson Myron was an active member of Sequoyah Hills Presbyterian Church, where he served for over 20 years. He was also a member of Knoxville Museum of Art, West Knoxville Sertoma Club, both the Farragut and Downtown Rotary Club, and the SAE Frat at UT Myron served as the President of East Tennessee Title (the oldest title company in the area: 1941-2018) for many years. He was a two-time President of Tennessee Land Title Association and on the Education Committee with them as well He cultivated friendships and partnerships that lasted a lifetime, and a legacy that will endure
Myron was preceded in death by his parents, Myron Ray and Mollie Farmer Ely and sister, Mollie Ely Graves Vester He is survived and will be deeply missed by his best friend and beloved wife of over 35 years, Jayne Linton Ely; children, Travis Hunter Kelton and fiancée Holly Mosley, J Lynn Kelton Farrer and husband Jeffrey; grandchildren, Samuel Hunter Tabiendo and Dylan Scott Farrer; sister, Carole Ely Fields; many nieces and nephews; and other extended family and friends.
Andrew Johnson Evans Jr , age 95, of Knoxville, Tennessee passed away on Monday, March 14, 2022 Judge Evans was born April 27, 1926 Judge Evans attended Young High School, Class of 1944 Out of high school, he enlisted in the U S Army during World War II where he served for 2 years During his time in the Army, he earned 3 overseas service bars, a bronze battle star, army of occupation medal, and good conduct medal He went on to attend the University of Tennessee, graduating from TN College of Law In 1961, Judge Evans earned his law degree and went into private practice In 1968, he was elected to Knox County General Sessions Court, where he served through 1989 Judge Evans loved Tennessee sports, his church, Graystone Presbyterian; he served his church, country, community, and family He was a member of the Burlington Masonic Lodge # 763
Judge Evans leaves behind his loving wife of 67 years, Avis Evans; sons, Philip Evans and Thomas Evans (Michelle); granddaughter, Molly Evans; brother, Kenneth Evans; nieces and nephews: Sherry, Mark, Kenny, Julia, Rosemary, and Jane, as well as other loved nieces and nephews, and loved pets
Anna Carylon Fox Hinds began her law career in Knoxville in 1967, after graduating from Vanderbilt University School of Law, with the formation of her own firm Over the years, she developed a reputation as a preeminent legal provider in the areas of estate planning, probate, trusts and strategies regarding the preservation, allocation, and disposition of assets Licensed to practice law for over 50 years, Anna brought enormous talent and experience to the profession
Anna was a firm believer in giving back to her community She was an avid supporter of civic involvement and gave freely of her time and talents to organizations in need such as the Knoxville Opera Company, Knoxville Opera Guild and Knoxville Symphony League; Leadership Knoxville and Alumni Board; Knoxville Chapter Historic Ramsey House; both the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley and the Girls Club of Knoxville, Laura Cansler Units; Planned Parenthood of East Tennessee, Inc ; and the Knoxville Roundtable of the National Conference of Christians and Jews
Anna was a strong supporter of Vanderbilt University and the School of Law, serving on the Board of Trust, the Alumni Association, and the School of Law's Founder Circle, among some of the many positions she held
Jim Montague passed away at age 66, in July of 2021 Jim was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee He graduated from Father Ryan High School, received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University, and his law degree from the University of Tennessee
After a brief stint in private practice in Kingsport, Tennessee, Jim practiced with Randall Reagan at Montague and Reagan for 12 years before spending the last 25 years of his career with the Knox County Public Defender’s Office Jim’s passion for justice, the law, and helping his clients was evident to all who knew him
Jim was a devout Catholic and a member of Sacred Heart Cathedral for the past 35 years Jim was also an avid fan of Vols’ and Titans’ football Jim was preceded in death by his parents: James Joseph, Sr , and Sarah; siblings: Michael, Catherine, and Sarah; nephew and godson: John Taylor Caine Jim is survived by sons James “Jay” Montague, III (Daphne) and Matthew Patrick Montague (Casey); beloved granddaughter Emilia Rose the light of his life; siblings Peter, Christine Stephens (Tommy), and Mary Caine (Larry); along with many nieces and nephews who lovingly referred to him as Bobo
George Morton passed away on August 24, 2022, just shy of his 95th birthday George graduated from the UT College of Law in 1949 In 1960, George and his brother, L Clure Morton founded the firm of Morton & Morton The firm continued to grow and eventually became Morton, Lewis, King & Krieg and is now known as Lewis Thomason. In a well-loved tradition, George required all the lawyers and staff to refer to each other as “Mr ” or “Miss/Mrs” as an outward show of respect to each other George spent his final years practicing law in a partnership with his son, Myers Morton
In 1991, George received the KBA’s Governor’s Award George served as the Law Director for the City of Knoxville and as legal counsel for the Public Building Authority He managed the East Tennessee campaign efforts of Howard Baker for his successful senatorial run in 1966 George could always be identified by his trademark cigar hanging from his mouth. He would often place his “previously” lit cigar in his suit pocket, which on occasion, resulted in smoke rising from his suit pocket
George was preceded in death by wife, Margo Morton; sister, Alyse Morton and brother, L. Clure Morton. George is survived by his children and their spouses: Marcus and Wendy Morton, Myers and Missy Morton; and Primis Anne and Brent Buechler George also had five grandchildren and three great grandchildren G E O R G E W M O R T O N J R
passed away on April 20, 2022 She was born in Chicago, Illinois, graduated from Taylor University in eived her law degree from the University of Tennessee in 1983. Upon her graduation, Linda was employed as an attorney at Morton, Lewis, King and Krieg She became a shareholder in 1987 and retired from the firm (now known as Lewis Thomason) in 2013 Linda was a highly regarded attorney and a mentor to many She managed the firm’s appellate practice and argued more than 100 cases to the Tennessee Supreme Court, the Tennessee Court of Appeals, and the Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals She successfully opposed certiorari on several cases before the United States Supreme Court
Linda was a proud member of the Knoxville and Tennessee Bar Associations, the Defense Research Institute, the Product Liability Advisory Council, and Daughters of the American Revolution She was a teacher and a member of the choir at West Hills Presbyterian Church and the author of a spiritual blog called the Ruminant Scribe
In 1986, Linda married the love of her life, Bill Mowles. Linda has two adult children, Jonathon Hamilton and Elizabeth Hamilton Light, and a stepdaughter Shawn Ploe, all of whom she dearly loved along with their spouses and her five grandchildren
Robert Phillip Murrian, aged 76, passed away on January 24, 2022 Bob was born in Knoxville on April 1, 1945
Bob received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy and later served as an officer aboard the US Ethan Allen, a nuclear submarine Bob graduated from The University of Tennessee Law School in 1974 Following law school, Bob was Clerk to Judge Robert L. Taylor and he practiced law with Butler, Vines and Babb, P.L.L.C. before being appointed United States Magistrate Judge Bob served as U S Magistrate Judge from 1978-2002 After retiring, Bob practiced with Kramer, Rayson and then restricted his practice to mediation and arbitration and opened a firm with Pam Reeves and Celeste Herbert.
Active in his church and the community, Bob was a member of the Leadership Knoxville Class of 1989 Bob was proud of Knoxville, and he and his wife Sue were part of the revitalization of Downtown Knoxville
Bob is survived by his wife, Sue, and children: Kim Pierce of Asheville, NC Jennifer Miller (husband Mark) of Christiansburg, VA, Albert B Murrian(wife Alex) of Louisville, KY, and Samuel R Murrian of Los Angeles Bob was also blessed with eight grandchildren and three great-grandchildren
Anthony Ridley, III, age 79, died on October 12, 2021
Jim was born on January 22, 1942, and grew up on a farm in Sumner County He received his bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University After graduating from Vanderbilt, Jim served in Vietnam in active ground combat
Jim graduated from the UT College of Law and was a member of the Order of the Coif Jim then served as the law clerk for Robert L. Taylor, US District Judge for East Tennessee. Jim later practiced and became a partner at Kramer Rayson
Jim founded a local chapter of the "Lawyers for Concerned Lawyers" to help recovering lawyers deal with substance abuse issues Jim was lover of duplicate bridge (Gold Life Master) Jim was a member of the Church of Ascension in Knoxville
Jim is preceded in death by his parents James A Ridley, Jr and Mary Frances Armistead Ridley and is survived by, daughter Lee Ridley Jones, son in law Tom Jones, granddaughter Madison Jones, two brothers Nathan (wife Connie) and Bill Ridley of Nashville, his nephew Todd Ridley (wife Katie and daughter Maggie), cousin Frank Riddle (wife Karla) and Barbara and Wally Geering of Knoxville
R O B E R T E . S I M P S O N
AUSA Robert E "Bob" Simpson, 93 years old, passed away peacefully on October 18, 2021, after shattering his hip and recovering in a rehabilitation facility. Bob suffered a long battle with FLD.
Bob was born in Atlanta, and graduated from Boys High As a ministerial student, he majored in history and received his undergraduate degree from Mercer University. Bob received his JD in 1960 from the UT College of Law. He worked in private practice until he joined the Justice Department and became an AUSA on September 5, 1966 Bob worked as an AUSA for 42 years and he thoroughly loved his job and the people he worked with- they were family to him During his career, Bob worked on many cases, and probably the most notorious was the Butcher case in 1983
Bob was proud of his Scottish heritage and became a Baird of Scotland as well as a member of the Scottish Society of Knoxville He was a member of the 1st Baptist Church of Knoxville, attended Trinity Episcopal Church of Gatlinburg, member of KSO and various community-based organizations
Bob is survived by his wife, Muriel His children, Mary, Susan, and Bobby, his daughter Lori (Ed) Wilkerson, and grandson Blair King along with their families Nephews, Jeff and Alan Ballew; nieces, Jennifer Ballew, Pam Matthews, and beloved Cynthia and Joe Emert and their sons, Jose and Jason (Lauren) Emert.
Thomas Slaughter peacefully passed away after fighting a heroic battle against brain cancer on March 20, 2022 He was surrounded by his family
Tom is survived by his loving wife of 39 years, Kathleen Slaughter, his three children Daniel Slaughter, his partner Sarah Holt, Sean Slaughter, his wife Leisl Slaughter, and their children Harmon and Finn, and Marykate Armstrong, her husband Eric Armstrong, and their son Wyatt He is also survived by his mother Carol Garrityy, his brother Jim Slaughter, and his sister Carol Pillman
Tom was born in East Orange New Jersey but fell in love with East Tennessee when he arrived in Knoxville to attend law school at the University of Tennessee Tom was a well-respected attorney in Knoxville, with his own practice for 30 years before joining the Anderson County Public Defender’s office in 2019
Tom was a man of many talents and hobbies including golf, running multiple marathons, and all things trivia, history and adventure His greatest joy was spending time with his family and friends He was a devoted father and grandfather who gave his time, energy and support to his loved ones He was loved deeply by all who knew him
H O N . C H A R L E S D . S U S A N O J R .
On May 7, 2022, Tennessee Court of Appeals Chief Judge Emeritus Charles D Susano, Jr passed away He left a legacy of faith, kindness, compassion, and steadfast devotion to his family, his friends, his church, his community, and the Rule of Law.
Judge Susano graduated with honors from Knoxville Catholic High School, Notre Dame University, and the University of Tennessee College of Law. After practicing law in Knox County for 30 years, he was appointed to the Court of Appeals where he served until he retired in 2020 While on the bench, he heard over 3,000 cases and authored over 1,000 well-reasoned and well-written opinions His remarkable service earned him numerous awards including the Justice Frank F Drowota III Outstanding Judicial Service Award, the Tennessee Chapter of ABOTA’s Appellate Judge of the Year Award, and the KBA’s Courage in the Face of Adversity Award
Even more remarkable is that in 1982, Judge Susano suffered a nearly life-ending injury that confined him to a wheelchair With incredible grit and determination, Judge Susano endured obstacles and challenges, never letting his paralysis define him.
Judge Susano leaves his wife and love of his life, Carolyn; sons, Stephen and wife Ana and Charlie and wife Robin; daughter, Maria; Preston, who he loved as his own, and wife Lynn; and six grandchildren.
L Y N N P . T A L L E Y
An old proverb states, “a fire is never out until the last spark is extinguished ” This past summer, we lost Lynn Talley, an attorney whose fierce dedication to justice and the Knoxville community burned brightly. Lynn came from humble beginnings as the fifth of seven children born to a mailman and homemaker in Nashville, TN She learned early to negotiate for what she wanted, and in every situation, saw that everyone was treated fairly Lynn lived by the motto that our greatest deeds are done unknowingly. She was always there to help family, friends, and strangers. She graduated from Nashville public schools, Fisk University, and the University of Tennessee School of Law As a lawyer, she worked for TVA and the Social Security Administration She was known for her quick wit and love of music She was a devoted supporter of the YWCA of Knoxville, and, after her cancer diagnosis, she committed much time and energy to the Cancer Support community She was a loyal supporter of nonprofit legal organizations dedicated to justice, fairness, the rule of law, and equal access to justice Lynn will be remembered for her kindness, capacity for empathy, and generosity
Karmen Latrice Waters, aged 50, was born on December 20, 1971, and passed away on January 5, 2022 after struggling for several months with a sudden medical condition Affectionately known by the family as Latrice, she was a lifelong Christian
Karmen was an avid learner beginning at an early age and excelled in both academics and sports. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame where she received a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in Management Information Systems She attended the New England School of Law where she earned a juris doctorate law degree and then became a criminal defense attorney. Karmen was licensed to practice law in New York and Tennessee Karmen worked in both the public and private sector She also served as Magistrate Judge for Knox County General Sessions Court
Karmen was a leader, pioneer, mentor, friend, adventurer, and lover of her family and friends Her favorite past times were traveling and spending time with her nieces, nephew, and family She will be remembered most for her larger-thanlife personality, her infectious smile, her laugh, and the time she spent helping others
Karmen leaves behind a loving and faithful family She leaves to cherish her memories, her mother and father, Margean Waters and Robert L Waters, Jr ; brother, Robert L Waters III (Natalie); nieces, Sydney, Blakely, and Zarah Waters; nephew, Zaire Waters; grandmother, Estel Cash; and a host of other relatives, friends, and colleagues
P A T T Y W H E E L E R
Patty Wheeler was born in Chickasha, Oklahoma on March 16, 1941 and passed away on June 24, 2022 in Knoxville, Tennessee
Patty obtained her undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Oklahoma, a Ph D In Speech Pathology and her J D from the University of Southern California After practicing in California, Patty moved with her family to Tennessee, where she engaged in the practice of law until her retirement from Wimberly Lawson Patty, along with another Knoxville attorney, formed the East Tennessee Lawyers’ Association of East Tennessee In addition, Patty served as a member of the KBA’s Board of Governors, as an adjunct professor at the UT College of law, as a Board member for TLAW and a member of the Board of Governors for the Tennessee Justice Center
In addition to her law practice, Patty was also a mediator and arbiter, certified by the American Arbitration Association. Following her retirement, Patty and her husband, Manfred, traveled five continents and throughout the United States