Detectives with the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office partner with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) to investigate what is being ruled a homicide in southern Paulding County.
On January 11, 2024 at approximately 3:40 PM, Paulding E-911 was contacted by one of the neighbors of Riverbend Trail, which is inside the Emerald Point Subdivision. The neighbor
indicated that he found who he thought was the resident of 158 Riverbend Trail Douglasville, GA 30134 unresponsive at the home.
When Deputies responded to the home, they located what was later determined to
be the male resident of the home, Charvis Terrence Baulding (B/M, 30 YOA),
deceased as a result of gunshot wounds. After clearing the home and finding no one
there, the residence was cordoned off and declared a crime scene.
Detectives with the Criminal Investigations Division of the Sheriff’s Office
immediately responded to the scene and GBI Agents arrived later that evening.
Detectives, Agents, and Crime Scene Investigators processed the scene and spoke to
neighbors and family members who had arrived after the incident took place.
As a result of the preliminary findings from the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office
during the autopsy, combined with other forensic aspects of the investigation,
Baulding’s death is being investigated as a homicide. The official autopsy report is
pending as they typically take quite some time to complete by the forensic
pathologists at the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office.
Detectives and Agents want to make sure the community is aware that there is no
indication that residents of this neighborhood or surrounding areas are, or ever
were, in any immediate danger.
However, we do want to encourage everyone to always remain alert and aware of their surroundings. Please feel free to report any
suspicious activity to 911.
Sheriff Gary Gulledge stated, “This is a very complex case. We have taken an
enormous amount of time to ensure that no stone has been left unturned in this
investigation. I know it may seem like we may not be working as quickly as the
family may want, but we are working diligently in conjunction with the GBI to
ensure we find out who killed Charvis Baulding. Our thoughts and prayers go out
to his grieving family.”
As this investigation progresses, Detectives and Agents want to encourage anyone
who may have information about this case to call the Paulding County Sheriff’s
Office Anonymous Tip Line at (770) 443-3047 or send a message via the Paulding
Sheriff mobile app.