A 24-year-old man is behind bars on an aggravated assault charge after police say he shot someone near Waterworks Road and 14th Avenue North last Friday, capping an investigation that also led to a stolen-firearm possession charge against the driver of the victim's car. Demon Clopton was arrested Saturday following the shooting, which happened the day before near the Northside intersection.
The victim did not wait for police to arrive. According to The Commercial Dispatch, he left the scene in his own vehicle and drove himself to Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle, where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and released later that same Friday. Columbus Police Department officers had responded to the shooting scene at Waterworks Road and 14th Avenue North, per a CPD press release cited in the newspaper's report.
Police later located and stopped the victim's vehicle. Behind the wheel was 31-year-old Jaylin Williams, who was not the victim and was not immediately connected to the shooting itself. Williams was arrested on charges of possession of marijuana in a motor vehicle and possession of a stolen firearm, the same report states.
Detectives Zero In On a Suspect
Detectives identified Clopton as the shooting suspect during the investigation. He was arrested and now faces the aggravated assault charge. As of Sunday, both Clopton and Williams remained in custody at the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center, according to the same Commercial Dispatch account, which credited Columbus Police Department Sergeant Nicholas Hairston with details on the case.
Under Mississippi Code § 97-3-7, a felony aggravated assault conviction can carry up to 20 years in state prison or up to a year in county jail, according to Justia Law.
Familiar Faces, Familiar Streets
Neither man arrested in this case is a stranger to Lowndes County law enforcement. Williams has a documented history with local police that includes an August 2024 incident in which he led Columbus police on a vehicle chase after fleeing the Lowndes County Courthouse during a disturbance at a murder trial, an episode reported at the time by the same newspaper. That chase ended at 14th Avenue North and Railroad Street — the same street corridor where Friday's shooting later took place. Williams was charged at the time with possession of drug paraphernalia.
Clopton's record likewise stretches back years. In January 2021, when he was 18, he was arrested in Columbus on out-of-county warrants for aggravated assault and armed robbery stemming from Noxubee County, after allegedly biting a police officer during his arrest. Lowndes County Sheriff's Office booking records also show Clopton was arrested in October 2020, at age 18, on charges of sale, possession, or use of a controlled substance and possession of marijuana.
Northside Location Sits Near Long-Running Cleanup Site
The intersection where the shooting happened borders a notable piece of Columbus geography. The area around 14th Avenue North and Waterworks Road sits next to the 90-acre former Kerr-McGee wood-treating site, which remains under long-term federal environmental remediation, according to Greenfield Columbus, the entity overseeing the ongoing EPA cleanup project in the area.
A City Marking a Year Without a Homicide
By October 2025, Columbus had marked a 12-month stretch without a reported homicide in the city, according to WCBI TV.
Even so, local police have long said that shootings in Columbus tend not to be random. Columbus Police Chief Joseph Daughtry said publicly in June 2023 that local shooting incidents in the city almost always involve people who know one another, a pattern that can complicate investigations when witnesses are reluctant to cooperate.
Several questions remain open in this case, including the exact relationship between Clopton, Williams and the victim, whether Williams had permission to be driving the victim's vehicle, and the origin of the stolen firearm recovered during his traffic stop. Neither the victim's identity nor further charge details had been released as of Sunday.
