Donte Bell, the Augusta man who killed his mother in a brutal 2021 attack, has been sentenced to life in prison. He gets a chance at parole and probation in 30 years, but can never return to Augusta.
In a highly emotional sentencing hearing Thursday, family members of Awanda Thomas described how Bell’s actions had torn their family apart.
Bell, who had a lengthy history of misdemeanors including domestic violence, was living at his mother’s Martin Road residence in November 2021.
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When she asked him to move out, he shot her, after bludgeoning her with a tool that has never been found, Augusta Circuit District Attorney Jared Williams told the court Thursday.
The crime shocked the community, who knew Thomas as a warm and people-loving person.
Today the incident remains a source of great shame for the family, Bell’s brother, Joseph Gibbons, said.
“I called her, and she was happy that morning,” he said.
Now they have to console Bell’s grandchildren on a regular basis. Birthday celebrations turn into cemetery visits, he said.
Bell’s sister said her son was her mother’s first grandchild.
Thomas had “been there the whole time” for the entire family, including Bell, she said.
“Donte had everything in the world,” she said. Thomas would “feed the whole neighborhood,” particularly Bell’s friends. Yet somehow, “he was always abusive” toward his mother.
Now, she has to attempt to explain to her children why their uncle killed their beloved grandmother. The children worry if Bell gets out of prison, he will kill them too, she said.
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Lanessa Thomas said she was named for her aunt. “The possibility of parole? Uh-uh,” she said.
Bell told family members he was going to kill his mom. “He was going to kill that b,” another sibling said.
Awanda Thomas told family members she feared Bell might one day kill her.
“She knew that day was going to come, because of his anger,” Bell’s brother said. “He deserves to go to hell.”
Bell told the court his only mental health diagnosis was PTSD, discovered at the county jail.
He offered no apology Thursday after pleading guilty to malice murder, felony murder, possession of cocaine and possessing a gun while committing a felony. He grinned at his wife and in-laws as police led him out of the courtroom.
Defense attorney Jay Kim said had the case gone to trial, he’d have raised a battered person defense.
As a child, Bell endured physical abuse in the home so severe it caused him to miss school. The Department of Family and Children Services was called many times, Kim said.
Since getting treatment in jail, he’s allowed to work as a trusty and has had no new offenses inside, Kim said.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Keagan Waystack of the DA office’s Violent Crimes and Gang Unit.
Bell’s is such a “horrible case,” Richmond County Superior Court Judge John Flythe said.
“It’s beyond the pale” to kill the woman who gave birth to you and changed your diapers, he said.
“There’s part of you that is missing,” Flythe told Bell. “You should consider every day the wreckage you left behind.”
Should he survive prison, after which he’s to serve an additional 13 years on probation, Flythe banished Bell from every Georgia county except Fulton.
