By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

A 67-year-old Alabaster man has posted a $10,000 bond and has been ordered to not have contact with his neighbor after police said the man allegedly assaulted his neighbor during a property line dispute.

The Alabaster Police Department arrested Fred McClendon Bohannon at about 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 1 and charged him with one felony count of first-degree assault. The arrest came after Bohannon allegedly used a “miniature novelty baseball bat” to assault his neighbor after the two were involved in an argument over property lines, said Alabaster Police Chief Curtis Rigney.

“There was a dispute over who owned what,” Rigney said. “He injured him severely enough that the charge was elevated to first-degree assault.”

According to Alabama law, first-degree assault occurs when a person “with intent to cause serious physical injury to another person, he causes serious physical injury to any person by means of a deadly weapon or a dangerous instrument.”

First-degree assault is a Class B felony. If convicted of the crime, Bohannon could face up to 20 years in prison.

According to court records, Bohannon is scheduled to appear at the Shelby County Courthouse for a preliminary hearing at 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 3.