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Man found guilty of evidence tampering
I-Man not guilty in shooting Nichols mug
Nichols

A Dawson County man was sentenced to 20 days in jail last week for his role in a 2013 shooting in southwestern Dawson County.

James Cletus Nichols, 61, was found guilty on a single charge of evidence tampering.

Initially charged with two counts of aggravated assault and one count each of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and false statements, he was cleared of those charges.

Paul Truelove, 59, of Dawson County was also charged in the case that stemmed from a Halloween 2013 shooting of a Dawsonville man off Kelly Bridge Road.

Truelove pleaded guilty to firing the shots.

He received a 15-year sentence with the first 18 months to be served in jail and the remainder on probation, according to court records.

Throughout the course of the jury trial, Nichols' attorney maintained his client did not fire the weapon that struck Danny Hamby the morning of Oct. 31.

"J.C. Nichols did not fire those shots. It was Paul Truelove," Attorney Zach Tomlin told the jurors in his opening remarks.

Hamby sustained minor injuries to his face from the pellets fired into the car in which he was riding, according to court testimony.

Nichols was sentenced to two years with 20 days to be served in jail.

He has been in Dawson County Sheriff's custody since April 22.