Darrin Mitchell

Do you know who murdered Darrin?
Darrin Mitchell, a 35-year-old Black man known to friends and family as "Bird," was an outgoing father of three sons who loved playing basketball. His parents, Walter and Gwendolyn Mitchell, remembered him as a kind and good-hearted person who enjoyed spending time with his family, often stopping by their house. His father believed Darrin’s trusting nature was part of what made him special, saying, “He loved people... His good heartedness and kindness is in part why he’s not with us anymore.”

In the early, snowy morning hours of December 17, 2016, a 911 call was placed from the South Linden home Darrin shared with his live-in girlfriend, Lashonta Sullivan. Around 1:42 a.m., Columbus Police officers were dispatched to the residence in the 1500 block of Duxberry Avenue. Inside, they found Darrin unresponsive on the floor, suffering from a gunshot wound to his back. Sullivan told police that Darrin had just returned from a bar eight miles away, and she believed he was drunk when he came inside and collapsed. Emergency medics transported Darrin to Grant Medical Center in critical condition, but he succumbed to his injury and was pronounced dead at 2:18 a.m.

For nearly a decade, the case remained cold, leaving Darrin’s family with agonizing questions. His mother, Gwendolyn, pleaded for answers before her death in 2020. "I wonder what happened," she said in a 2018 interview. "I know someone out there knows something.” His father, Walter, never believed the story that his son had managed to drive home after being shot. The investigation continued, and detectives eventually uncovered critical evidence that contradicted the initial account of what happened that night.

A witness told investigators they heard Darrin banging on the door for five to ten minutes before he was let inside. The Franklin County Coroner determined that the gunshot wound to Darrin's back would have rendered him unconscious almost immediately, making it impossible for him to have driven himself home from a bar. Investigators found no evidence that the shooting occurred anywhere other than inside the Duxberry Avenue house. Based on this evidence, the Columbus Division of Police secured an arrest warrant.

On April 20, 2026, nearly ten years after Darrin’s death, authorities arrested 47-year-old Lashonta Sullivan and charged her with his murder. The arrest brought a profound sense of relief to Darrin’s father. "I couldn't believe it. My first reaction was, it is hard to believe after all these years," Walter Mitchell said. "I am sorry she is not here to witness this," he added, speaking of his late wife who had worked tirelessly for justice for their son. "I am just glad that he is getting justice."

Following her arrest, Lashonta Sullivan appeared in Franklin County Municipal Court. A judge set her bond at $500,000. As of late April 2026, her case was scheduled for its next court hearing on April 30, marking the beginning of legal proceedings that the Mitchell family had long hoped for.