A Smith County jury on Friday returned a verdict of guilty to the crime of Aggravated Assault by Recklessness in the case of a Carthage woman charged with firing a gun in the direction of her former roommate. Sharon Camp, 62, was charged after an investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation for the crime committed on September 29, 2022. The offense occurred inside of a residence in the 700 block of Jefferson Avenue, where the victim had returned to remove her property as she was moving from the residence. A dispute arose between homeowner Sharon Camp and the victim, resulting in Camp firing a single shot in close proximity to the victim. The bullet grazed the ear of the victim and the close proximity of the shot resulted in minor stippling burns from the gunshot. Camp was arrested and remained free on bond until the trial.
The trial began on Wednesday, December 4, and lasted two and a half days. Defense attorney Davis Griffin argued that Camp was justified in firing the shot in protection of herself from the unarmed victim. Prosecutors Javin Cripps and Tom Swink proved that the victim was not a threat to Camp, and that Camp and the victim argued several minutes before Camp made the decision to fire the shot. A key piece of evidence in the case was an audio recording of the incident made by Camp on a cell phone that permitted the jury to hear the entire argument between the two women leading up to the shooting. Based on the audio recording and testimony of the witnesses, including both the victim and Camp, the jury rejected the self-defense argument and returned a verdict of Aggravated Assault by Recklessness.
“This was a case where an argument was needlessly escalated when the defendant decided to brandish a handgun,” said Jason Lawson, District Attorney. “I am thankful that the victim was not injured more seriously, as cases like this often have deadly consequences.”
Lawson also credited the work of the Carthage Police Department and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. “The professionalism of our police forces in gathering and presenting the evidence in a trial is valuable. When agencies work in cooperation as they did in this case, prosecutors are able to present the case clearly to the jury and obtain the right outcome.” The lead investigator in the case is Special Agent Jeremy Baker of the TBI.
Camp will be sentenced by Criminal Court Judge Brody Kane on March 7.
