Milledgeville Man Sentenced to More Than 11 Years for Armed Standoff with Deputies

Milledgeville, GA – A Baldwin County man with a prior aggravated assault conviction has been sentenced to more than eleven years in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm during a 2022 standoff with deputies.

Dormaine Mitchell, 39, of Milledgeville, was sentenced on Aug. 19 by U.S. District Judge C. Ashley Royal to 140 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Mitchell was found guilty on April 8 of one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon after a two-day trial. There is no parole in the federal system.

According to evidence presented at trial, a Baldwin County deputy stopped Mitchell on Oct. 13, 2022, after observing him driving erratically on Vinson Highway near Laboratory Road. The deputy reported Mitchell smelled strongly of alcohol and slurred his speech. While speaking with him, the officer noticed the extended magazine of a Glock 22 pistol between the driver’s seat and center console.

The situation escalated into a tense standoff as the deputy drew her weapon and called for backup. Mitchell eventually moved the gun to the passenger seat before being taken into custody. While being escorted to a patrol car, he told the officer, “You better be glad it didn’t go bad.”

Mitchell has a lengthy criminal history, including a prior conviction for aggravated assault in Baldwin County Superior Court.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office, the Milledgeville Police Department, and the Georgia Department of Community Supervision.

U.S. Attorney William R. “Will” Keyes prosecuted the case.