Covington man sentenced to 30 years in prison for child abuse and neglect

NEWTON COUNTY — The Newton County District Attorney’s Office announced today that Carey Donovan Clark will serve 30 years in prison, followed by 30 years of probation, for child abuse and neglect.

On April 3, a Newton County jury found Clark guilty of six counts of cruelty to children in the second degree and one count of aggravated battery. On June 17, the court, following the state’s recommendation, sentenced Clark to decades behind bars. 

The announcement, posted by the district attorney’s office to Facebook, says that the court delivered the sentence after considering results from the pre-sentencing investigation and heard arguments from Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Bailey Wilkinson, for the state, and the defense.

According to the press releases, Clark’s charges stem from “the abuse and neglect of multiple of his biological children.” There were a total of six children affected, all of whom were reportedly younger than 10.

The case warranted the involvement of Newton County and Cherokee County DFCS and the children involved received services from Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and A Child’s Voice Child Advocacy Center. The investigation and arrest were handled by the Newton County Sheriff’s Office.

Wilkinson told The Covington News in April that the three older children went to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and one child remained hospitalized for a few days due to internal and external injuries.

Clark’s co-defendant in the case, Nora Rodgers, was sentenced in December 2023 after pleading guilty. Rodgers received charges similar to Clark’s: 60 years with the first 30 years in confinement. 

“Both defendants received a sentence that reflects the seriousness of their crimes against young children,” stated District Attorney Randy McGinley on Facebook. “The children bravely came into court to tell the jurors about the abuse and neglect they had suffered. Their strength then and now is something to admire.”

According to the press releases, both Rodgers and Clark would make the children perform exercises and would not give the children “necessary sustenance.” A doctor testifying from Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta reportedly called the children’s experiences “torture.” 

According to Wilkinson, the abuse was dealt at the hands of both Rodgers and Clark. The two adults and six children had lived together since 2018.

When Rodgers was sentenced, a statement from McGinley detailed some of the exercises the children were forced to perform. 

“Over the years the children had suffered torture under the guise of punishment. They were forced to do extreme bootcamp style exercises,” the statement with Rodgers’ sentencing read. “They would have to run laps, squats with large logs from the yard, jumping jacks, etc., for extended time periods and to the point of exhaustion and injury. They would often have to perform these exercises in the middle of the night and in the heat of summer.”

The statement further declared that Rodgers would “beat” the children if their exercise was not up to her standards and that she would spar with them as well, often hitting them. 

Wilkinson told The News that the methods used to punish the children were decided on by Clark and Rodgers together. Clark did not engage in the sparring, but he was aware of it. She added that Clark did engage in the exercise and physical punishments, but not to the same extent as Rodgers.