Indictment in Homicide Case on Center Hill Lake From Death this Past Summer

December 3, 2009

38 year old James P. Vernon (pictured) of Green Hill Road, Rock Island has been indicted on a first degree murder charge by the DeKalb County Grand Jury in connection with the death of 24 year old David Joseph Clark.

Clark was severely beaten during an attack on a houseboat at Center Hill Lake July 7th. He later died from his injuries at Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga.

The arrest warrant states that "On July 7th, law enforcement began an investigation regarding serious injuries to Clark, who had been discovered unconscious in a vehicle parked at Horseshoe Bend Marina. A subsequent investigation by Dan Friel of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement officers has determined that Clark had been severely beaten on the eve of July 7th on a houseboat on Center Hill Lake."

" Eye witnesses have provided information concerning the beating of Clark by Vernon on the houseboat. The beating was accomplished by hitting the victim repeatedly in the face and head with his fist and concluded with kicks to the victim’s body. Witnesses describe the continued beating of the victim even after he was unconscious."

" A subsequent investigation also determined the location on Center Hill Lake where the houseboat was anchored at the time of this beating to be located just inside the DeKalb County line. The victim was airlifted to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga and remained there in the intensive care unit in a comatose state with massive head injuries" until his death. – WJLE NEWS

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