An 18-year-old Baxter man has been arrested in connection with a shooting in the Austin Bottom community last week. According to Sheriff Patrick Ray, James Paris Goff was arrested on May 15 and charged with two counts of aggravated assault and two counts of reckless endangerment.

The May 11 incident reportedly occurred after Goff and some friends arrived the Austin boat ramp by boat. Goff apparently got into a fight with another man and left by boat, but later returned in a vehicle, and brought a handgun.

The sheriff said Goff confronted the man he had fought with, and showed him the gun. He reportedly turned the gun on a vehicle carrying three other people who were attempting to leave the area and fired several shots. One of the bullets penetrated the vehicle and struck a passenger in the rear seat in the back. The driver and front-seat passenger were apparently unharmed.

"We received a call at 7:36 p.m. from central dispatch that a man had been shot at the Austin Bottom Lake Boat Access Area," Ray said. "The shooter and victim had already left the scene prior to law enforcement's arrival. We met officers of the Putnam County Sheriff's Department, who responded for mutual aid or backup purposes. We then started an investigation into the shooting."

"During the investigation, deputies and detectives from both the DeKalb and Putnam County Sheriff's Departments were able to find the victim at a family member's house in Cookeville," Ray continued. "The victim was then taken to the hospital in Cookeville and later transported by ground ambulance to a medical facility in Nashville, where he was treated and released. The investigation resulted in the arrest of Goff."

One aggravated assault charge was levied against Goff because of the fight with the first victim, and the second is the result of his alleged wounding of the person in the vehicle who was shot. The reckless endangerment charges were because he put the lives of the other two people in the vehicle in danger by shooting at them.

Goff’s bond was set at $120,000, and he will appear in court on June 4. The names of the victims have not been released.