By Joe Johnson
A man who last year stabbed the face of a bouncer at an Athens strip club has been sentenced to probation.
As part of a plea bargain with the Western Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office, 29-year-old Jewell Leon Clay of Lawrenceville on Friday pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault and one count of obstruction of a law enforcement officer.
According to Superior Court documents, the two counts of assault were merged and Clay was sentenced to five years, with the first eight months to be served in confinement, and the obstruction charge carried a sentence of 12 months of probation to run concurrently with the penalty for the assaults.
According to the sentencing document, Western Judicial Circuit Chief Judge Eric Norris gave Clay credit for the time he already served in jail, from the time of his arrest until the sentencing date, with “no further confinement to be served.”
Conditions of probation include substance abuse evaluation and treatment for Clay, who is barred from Athens-Clarke County for the duration of his probation, the judge noted on the sentencing document.
The incident for which Clay was arrested occurred early the morning of July 24, 2021, when Athens-Clarke County police said Clay stabbed a bouncer as he was being escorted out of Toppers International Showbar on North Jackson Street for an unknown reason.
Another bouncer suffered a laceration on his forearm as he wrestled away the knife from Clay, police said.
That bouncer and other employees held Clay on the ground until officers arrived to take custody of him, according to police, and while he was being led to a police car, Clay broke free from an officer’s grasp and began to run, but was quickly captured and placed in the car.
The bouncer who was stabbed in the face was a 19-year-old Athens resident, who was transported to Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center for treatment.