Shooting: Suspect held without bond
A gunshot led to an exchange of words that was followed by a simultaneous exchange of gunshots last Wednesday, July 10, in the Hemptown community of Fannin County.
The gunshots sent two victims to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville.
Fannin County Sheriff Dane Kirby said deputies were sent to Victory Ridge Road at 5:26 p.m. When the call was dispatched, there was a question as to how many shooters had been involved.
The scene of the shooting was reported as 64 Victory Ridge Road, where investigators determined the man who was the victim of the altercation had been working to help a friend.
The alleged aggressor, George Wade Carlton, 69, of 74 Victory Ridge Road, Morganton, has been charged with five felonies, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, two counts of Aggravated Assault with intent to murder, Commission of a Crime by a Convicted Felon with a Firearm, and Exploitation of Elders.
Carlton was found on the front porch of his home “bleeding out” by sheriff’s Investigator Dustin Carder. Carlton had been shot in the femoral artery, Investigations Captain Justin Turner said.
Turner credited Carder with saving Carlton’s life by applying a tourniquet to stop the bleeding. Carder waited with the victim until EMS arrived, a situation Turner described as happening “like clockwork.”
The victim was found at 64 Victory Ridge Road, suffering a non-life-threatening wound to the abdomen.
Kirby said the victim was helping a friend, the homeowner at 64 Victory Ridge Road, with a small construction project when they heard a gunshot that sounded like it came from right around the corner of the residence, but the shooter was out of sight.
The victim, who was armed with a 9mm pistol, went around the corner where he saw Carlton, who was about 30 yards away, pointing a .30-06 rifle at him.
The two exchanged words and then shot at each other.
Turner said, according to witness statements, the shots came at the same time, sounding like a single shot.
After the shooting, the two men retreated to the separate residences.
Carlton was taken into custody when he was released from the Gainesville hospital.
He remained held in the Fannin County Jail without bond Monday.