Bond was denied last week for the alleged ‘shooter’ in a drive-by shooting case that took place in Gray earlier this summer.

Demarco Deon Woodford, 21, was arrested June 19 and charged with aggravated assault, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, criminal damage to property in the first degree and carrying a deadly weapon to or at a public gathering in a school zone. The shooting took place June 8 at the Ninth Grade Academy in Gray.

Judge Hulane George denied Woodford’s bond motion Aug. 20, stating that she did not want the defendant to have a chance to influence any witnesses.

Assistant District Attorney Gregory Bushway presented the case to the court. He said a 32-year-old mother was driving by the school when the shots were fired, and bullet holes were found in the door near where her two young children were strapped into their car seats.

Bushway said Woodford fired a .380 caliber hand gun, and Gray Police officer Lt. Eric Maynard found the shell casings at the scene. He said Woodford was one of at least two people firing at the vehicle, and another man had an AK47 at the scene, but did not fire.

Bushway said Woodford and his co-defendants came from Bibb County to confront several young men from Jones County. He said at the center of the disagreement was a young woman. The situation had been brewing for several months and came to fruition that evening.

The prosecutor said two young men from Jones County drove to the school and fled the scene moments later when the Macon group arrived with weapons drawn. That took place moments before the young mother drove by in a similar vehicle.

Bushway said, once arrested, the defendants gave their accounts of what happened.

“Mr. Woodford’s criminal history is not extensive, but I ask he be denied bond. He was arrested in Atlanta, which is evidence he is a flight risk. According to the lieutenant, his co-defendants are terrified of him. He is known by them to be very violent,” he said.

Defense Attorney Keri Foster Thompson said her client entered a not-guilty plea and she asked for reasonable bond. She said Woodford has no felony convictions and has strong ties to the community.

“He applied to the military before his arrest and is no threat to anyone,” she said.