Bradley County Sheriff's Office / Charles Franklin Garrett, 44, of Cleveland, Tenn.
A Cleveland, Tennessee, man has been found guilty of murder and attempted murder in a 2021 shooting at a local tavern on Spring Place Road.
Bradley County jurors found Charles Franklin Garrett, 44, guilty in a Bradley County Circuit Court trial of the first-degree murder of Xavier Rouse and the attempted murder of Jordan Myers at TBOW's Tavern in Cleveland in March 2021, according to court documents. Garrett was also found guilty of possession of a weapon by a convicted felon and employment of a firearm during a dangerous felony.
A conviction by the jury Dec. 1 on a charge of first-degree murder in Tennessee carries an automatic life sentence of 51 years with or without the possibility of parole, while sentencing on the other charges will be handed down by Circuit Court Judge Sandra Donaghy early next year, according to court officials.
"Since it's an active case, I'm reluctant to comment," Garrett's attorney, Cleveland-based Todd Gee, said by phone.
Garrett was sought on a warrant after failing to appear at a Nov. 21 hearing leading up to his trial date. When he was taken into custody on that warrant, Garrett was held at the Bradley County Jail on a $500,000 bond until his trial, according to court and jail records.
According to newspaper archives, witnesses at the tavern told police a "white male entered the bar and began causing problems."
An altercation began between that man, who police later identified as Garrett, and a bar employee, Jordan Myers, according to previous reports. During the incident, a bar patron later identified as Rouse was shot, and emergency services transported him to a hospital where he died. Bradley County Sheriff's Office deputies found Garrett at the Spring Lake Apartments shortly after he fled the scene at the tavern.
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In the other convicted counts, Garrett faces a potential sentence of life without parole for attempted first-degree murder, one to six years for possession of a firearm by a felon and three to four years in prison for possession of a firearm while committing a felony, according to state law.
Garrett's sentencing hearing on the remaining counts is set for March 8, according to court officials and documents.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.
Staff Photo by Ben Benton / The Bradley County Jail in Cleveland is shown Oct. 12.