A Bibb County jury delivered justice on April 27, 2026, convicting Earlondez Bond, 37, of Aggravated Assault. Bond arrived at Hunter’s Run Apartments armed with two firearms and left a man dead. Immediately after the verdict, Bond was sentenced to 20 years on probation, with the first 10 years to be served.
On October 12, 2020, Bibb County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to Hunter’s Run Apartments after shots were fired. Investigators determined that Bond came to the complex over a vehicle dispute. When confronted by victim Joshua Benard Horne, Bond pointed a firearm at several people.
Bond admitted to investigators that he chased the victim and at some point dropped the weapon he was carrying. Bond’s wife told investigators that she had repeatedly tried to get her husband back into the car before the shooting escalated.
Physical evidence confirmed that both of Bond’s firearms were discharged. The projectile recovered from Horne’s autopsy matched Bond’s Taurus pistol. Prior to trial, prosecutors understood this would be a challenging case, as Bond claimed self-defense because the victim retrieved Bond’s dropped Ruger and fired at Bond. The state met that challenge by offering Bond the ability to take responsibility and be sentenced to 10 years to serve five to avoid trial.
Bond gambled and chose to go to trial, which didn’t work out as well for him. At sentencing, the judge was pointed in her assessment: a 37-year-old man should have known better than to escalate the situation the way Bond did. The Court’s refusal to sentence Bond as a first offender reflected the seriousness with which the bench viewed his conduct.
“This verdict sends a clear message that you cannot arm yourself, walk into someone else’s neighborhood looking for a confrontation, and take a life without being held accountable,” said District Attorney Anita Howard.“ Mr. Bond made a series of calculated, dangerous choices that night, and this jury held him accountable for them.
We offered Bond the ability to make amends for his actions prior to trial. He rejected that opportunity and his sentence reflects that poor decision. The Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office is committed to pursuing justice for every victim of violent crime in our community, and we thank the jury for their diligence.”
