Houston County man sentenced to 12 years for aggravated assault in 2023 shooting

WARNER ROBINS, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT)- A Houston County man has been sentenced to serve 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to aggravated assault in connection with a 2023 shooting in Elko.

Brian Eugene Clarke, 40, entered a guilty plea on June 6, 2025, in Houston County Superior Court. He was sentenced to 20 years, with the first 12 to be served in the Georgia Department of Corrections.

The charges stem from a Sept. 24, 2023, incident when Clarke arrived at the home of 67-year-old Calvin Felder in Elko to confront another man who was living in a shed behind Felder’s residence, according to a news release from Houston County District Attorney Eric Edwards.

Following a brief fight between Clarke and the other man, during which Clarke was struck in the head, he went to his vehicle and retrieved a firearm. As Felder stepped outside to try to defuse the situation, Clarke fired through a privacy fence and struck Felder in the leg.

“When you introduce a gun into a conflict, you take it to a level that changes lives forever,” said District Attorney William Kendall Edwards. “We’re grateful the victim survived, and we hope this sentence sends a message that reckless violence will not go unanswered in Houston County.”