The funeral service was held Thursday morning for one of the first two black police officers hired by the City of Gainesville.
Earnest Eugene "Gene" Earls, 82, died earlier this week.
In 1963, he, along with Royce Stephens, became the city’s first two black officers, the beginning of a long career in law enforcement for Earls.
Two years after that, he took a second job, becoming the first black postal worker in Gainesville, according to his obituary. But he was soon left the post office to concentrate on his law enforcement career.
Earls became a member of the police department's Riot Squad, the Civil Defense Light Duty Rescue Team, and Chief of the Crime Prevention Unit – Juvenile Division, and was later promoted to Detective Sergeant. In 1973, he received a Certificate of Commendation from the American Legion and was named Officer of the Year.
Earls left the Gainesville Police Department in 1974, moving to the Hall County Sheriff’s Office. During his tenure there, he was named Special Advisor to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation on a murder case. He accepted an offer to join the police department at Lake Lanier Islands Authority in 1979. In 1987, he began work at the Georgia Department of Corrections at Arrendale State Prison in Alto. Earls' retirement in 2000 culminated 37 years in law enforcement.
(Go to the AccessWDUN Obituaries Page for a complete obituary.)
