James Hampton Wilson Jr.

DALTON, Ga. — A Dalton man who a witness said hit two men with an aluminum baseball bat in the parking lot of a Walmart in April of 2017 pleaded guilty to two counts of simple assault and one count of battery, all misdemeanors, and was sentenced to three years of probation as part of a plea deal.

James Hampton Wilson Jr. was indicted for three counts of aggravated assault (felonies), battery and two counts of cruelty to children in the third degree. Wilson was scheduled for trial this week before Superior Court Judge Jim Wilbanks. The other charges were dropped as part of the plea deal.

Wilson was sentenced to 12 months of probation for each of the three misdemeanor charges that he pleaded guilty to, to be served consecutively.

Wilson was arrested after an argument with two men in the parking lot of the Walmart on East Walnut Avenue. According to an incident report filed by sheriff’s deputies, a man said the argument began when Wilson almost hit him with his vehicle while the man was putting up his shopping cart. The man told deputies he “threw his hands up in the air and asked Mr. Wilson if he was trying to hit him.” He said Wilson accelerated like he was going to hit him and drove to another row and got out of the car with a knife and a baseball bat and started to walk toward him. He was “unclear what Mr. Wilson said to him …”

Wilson left but drove back down another row and the man and a friend tried to get a picture of the license plate of the car. Wilson then stopped and got out of the car with the baseball bat and charged him, the man said. The man said at the time that he suffered some bruises to his ribs, while his friend was hit twice in the head by the bat.

A witness said others in the parking lot were able to subdue Wilson until deputies arrived. Two juveniles were released to a family member after the local office of the Division of Family and Children Services was contacted.

When reached by a reporter after the incident, Wilson declined to comment.