Deaths in Custody
Died in prison

Sidney Dorsey

86 years old · died March 2, 2026 · Augusta State Medical Prison, Columbia County, Georgia

Sidney Dorsey, who served as DeKalb County sheriff from 1996 to 2000, died at age 86 while held at Augusta State Medical Prison in Grovetown, Georgia, in early March 2026. A former prosecutor described him as a decorated and much admired detective and the first Black sheriff elected in DeKalb County, and family accounts say he was survived by five children. The Georgia Department of Corrections said he died of natural causes, and no source reports a dispute about that account. Coverage also recalled his successor, Derwin Brown, who was killed in 2000, and Brown's daughter said she had wanted to talk with Dorsey and still has questions that will now go unanswered.

Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness. The Georgia Department of Corrections said he died of natural causes.

Reported by: Georgia Department of Corrections (the agency that held him). The only account of how this person died comes from the agency that held him.

News reports (10)

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