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DEKALB COUNTY, GA—DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston announced the conviction by jury trial of a man accused of shooting and killing a parking services employee who was dispatched to remove a boot from the defendant’s brother’s car.
On Tuesday, Sept. 29, Otis Blakes, 34, was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Kerwin Hinds, 47, an employee of Empire Parking Services. DeKalb County Superior Court Chief Judge Shondeana C. Morris, who presided over the trial, sentenced Blakes to Life in Prison, plus five years to serve.
Blakes was found guilty of Malice Murder, Felony Murder, Aggravated Assault, and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony.
According to the investigation, officers with the DeKalb County Police Department responded shortly after 7 a.m. on July 19, 2025, to a report of a person shot in the parking lot at an apartment complex in the 2300 block of Peachwood Circle in Atlanta. When officers arrived, they found Hinds with gunshot wounds to the head. He was pronounced dead on the scene.
Hinds, an employee of Empire Parking Services, was at the apartment complex to remove a boot from a vehicle illegally parked in a handicap accessible parking space. Footage from a body-worn camera that Hinds had on at the time of his murder shows a man later identified as Christopher Blakes , 30, yelling at Hinds to remove the boot as soon as Hinds arrived. Hinds repeatedly asked for money to pay the boot removal fee and tried to create space between himself and the man yelling at him.
The video shows Christopher Blakes shove Hinds, who shoved him back, knocking Christopher to the ground. While their altercation continued on the ground, Otis Blakes, the brother, approached the two men and opened fire on Hinds,shooting him in the head, according to the investigation.
The defendant and his brother remained on the scene and were taken into custody without incident. Otis Blakes has remained in the DeKalb County Jail without bond. Christopher Blakes has two outstanding misdemeanor charges for Simple Battery and Disorderly Conduct.
The case, assigned to the Homicide and Gangs Unit, was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Andrew Turner, with assistance from Assistant District Attorney Jamal Monteiro-Jones, District Attorney Investigator M.E. Goggins and Supervising Victim Advocate Millicent Taylor. DKPD Detective J. L. Jefferson led the initial investigation.