Man Found Guilty in Shooting over Child’s Balloon in Clarksville

An argument that began over a child’s balloon could send two men to prison for a very long time. They’re accused of opening fire on a house hunter as she was getting ready to show a property last year in Clarksville.

Following a previous guilty plea by the accused shooter to a charge of aggravated assault, the man believed to be his accomplice decided to try his fate with a jury trial.

On Wednesday, the jury found 22-year-old James Bagwell guilty of two counts of second-degree attempted murder as well as three other reckless endangerment charges.

Things turned violent after a 2-year-old got her hands on the balloon tied to a home that agent Tammy Earp planned to show to an interested couple in September 2012.

When Earp’s boyfriend told the child to put it back, an argument ensued with some of the residents along Barkwood Drive.

A Ford Thunderbird with five men inside soon arrived and tried to block Earp’s path. As the men exited the Thunderbird, officers said one of them started shooting.

Handgun rounds struck the door and hood of the woman’s car as well as a nearby house.

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