Naman Shrestha
In December 2000, just a few days before he was about to take office as the new sheriff of DeKalb County, Georgia, Derwin Brown met his tragic and untimely demise right outside his Decatur residence. Given his reputation and status in the county, it became a high-profile case with the detectives moving heaven and earth to find the perpetrator responsible for the murder. The episode titled ‘I Am the Law’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘American Monster: Abuse of Power’ chronicles the entire case and the investigation that ensued, revealing a series of dark secrets within the sheriff’s office.
Derwin Brown Was Killed After Returning Home From a Party
Burvena and George Robert Brown were blessed with Derwin Brown on June 22, 1954. Although he was born in Fort Knox, Kentucky, most of his childhood was spent in Long Island, New York, where he attended Woodfield Road School, Malverne Junior High School, and Malverne High School. He was a member of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity and Freemasonry. Having started off as a youth counselor for troubled teens in DeKalb County, Georgia, Derwin moved up the ranks and became one of the county’s first black patrol officers. Later, he also became the host of ‘The Naked Truth’ and earned a column in one of the local newspapers called Tell It Like It Is.
Apart from finding success in his professional career, Derwin was also lucky in matters of the heart. Married to the love of his life, Phyllis Oliver Brown, he was also the father of five children, including a daughter named Brandi Brown. After completing more than two decades in the DeKalb County Police Department, he was elected as the sheriff in November 2000. During his campaign, he pledged to put an end to corruption in the sheriff’s department. With just three days left for him to officially take office, the 46-year-old police veteran went to a pre-Christmas party on December 15, 2000.
When he returned to his Decatur, Georgia, residence around 11 pm, he was ambushed in his driveway and shot multiple times. When his wife heard the gunshots, she immediately called 911. As soon as the authorities arrived, Derwin was rushed to he hospital, where he succumbed to the gunshot wounds. The autopsy revealed that he was shot 11 times, with three of them proving to be fatal. The detectives secured the perimeter and found several shell casings on the ground, along with several red roses that he had gotten for his wife. Immediately, a high-profile investigation was launched.
Derwin Brown’s Murder Was Planned by Another Prominent Figure of the Community
As part of the investigation, the detectives dug deep into the life and history of Derwin Brown in order to find potential suspects with a motive. They suspected that drug dealers or gang members could be responsible for the murder, but it turned out to be a dead end. When they shifted their attention to Sheriff Sidney Dorsey, the DeKalb County Sheriff, whom Derwin defeated in the recent elections. At the time, there were hints of corruption inside his office, after which Derwin ran against him with a promise to get rid of the corruption. Thus, the authorities brought Sidney in for questioning and asked him about his whereabouts on the fateful night. He told the detectives that he was at home with his wife, an alibi that was corroborated.
Upon investigating the case further, they realized that several other people at the Sheriff’s office were on the verge of risking their jobs when Derwin took office, including Patrick Cuffy, who was reportedly filing fraudulent overtime hours to get paid extra. When interviewed, Patrick said that at the time of the murder, he was discussing future plans with three other men who were going to get fired from the office — Melvin Walker, David Ramsey, and Paul Skyers. Since all of them corroborated each other’s alibis, the police couldn’t keep them in custody despite their suspicions. A few months later, the investigators got another chance to interrogate Patrick, who was charged with murder in an unrelated drug-related case.
Thus, they made him a deal and offered him a lighter charge if he spilled the truth about Derwin’s murder. He agreed and revealed that Sidney Dorsey orchestrated the plot to have Derwin killed before he took office. Patrick claimed that he laid out a well-thought-out plan and hired him, Melvin, David, and Paul to carry out the job. Paul was the getaway driver, Melvin was the trigger man, and David and Patrick were backups with guns. Later, even Paul agreed to testify in exchange for the same deal as Patrick. He even led the police to the murder weapon. With enough evidence and witness testimonies against him, Sidney was arrested for the murder, alongside Melvin and David, about a year after Derwin was killed. Meanwhile, the other two accomplices were granted immunity due to their cooperation with the police.
Sidney Dorsey is Supposedly Incarcerated at a Georgia Prison
In June 2002, Sidney Dorsey’s trial got underway. The prosecution claimed that the defendant hired four men to kill Derwin Brown, who was about to get rid of the corruption within the sheriff’s office. They also told the jurors that Sidney had offered a promotion to Melvin and David for carrying out the killing for him. Three days of deliberation later, on July 10, 2002, the jury returned with a verdict and convicted the former sheriff of ordering the assassination of the newly elected sheriff, Derwin Brown. Later, he was also convicted of theft and racketeering. About a month later, on August 15, Sidney Dorsey’s sentencing hearing took place. Five of Derwin’s family members took the stand and addressed the court.
His wife, Phyllis, told the convict that she didn’t wish him death despite all the pain he had caused her and her family. Sidney also took the stand and maintained his innocence. He said, “I do not have the blood of Derwin Brown on my hands.” In the end, he was sentenced to life in prison for orchestrating the murder and another 23 years for the corruption charges against him. On top of that, he was ordered to serve concurrent sentences between 10 and 15 years for other convictions related to theft. A few years later, on July 13, 2007, the former sheriff confessed to the authorities that he had ordered the assassination of Derwin but claimed that he had tried to abort the killing but failed to. As of today, Sidney Dorsey is seemingly serving his sentence at a Georgia prison facility.
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