A Powder Springs man will spend life in prison, with a shot at parole, after a Cherokee County jury found he gunned down a father who had just shown up for his first court-ordered visit with his young son in the Acworth area.
Nicholas Michael Mimms, 37, was sentenced Wednesday to life with the possibility of parole plus five years for the 2021 killing of 31-year-old Eduardo Gilberto Figueroa, leaving the child’s family without a father.
A Cherokee County jury convicted Mimms in February of felony murder, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony after a three-week trial that featured testimony from 25 witnesses and roughly 200 exhibits, according to the Blue Ridge Judicial Circuit. Jurors saw evidence that included Mimms’ bulletproof vest, his firearm, crime-scene photos, medical records and surveillance video and audio, then deliberated for about eight hours before returning their verdict.
The shooting unfolded around noon on Aug. 7, 2021, on Mohawk Trail in the Acworth area, where Figueroa had arrived for a 12–2 p.m. visit he had recently been awarded. Investigators said Mimms, who had been designated as the supervisor for the visit and had never met Figueroa before, was waiting on the deck wearing a bulletproof vest and carrying a gun. They said he called Figueroa back as the father began to walk away and then shot him four times. Surveillance footage and audio captured the entire encounter, which prosecutors said lasted less than two minutes, as reported by FOX 5 Atlanta.
Prosecutors' account
Assistant District Attorney Megan S. Hertel told jurors that “Eduardo Figueroa arrived with love, excitement, and gifts for the son he was going to meet for the very first time,” emphasizing that the visit was supposed to be a milestone, not a last goodbye. Prosecutors argued that Mimms, by contrast, came prepared for violence, arriving in protective gear with a loaded weapon.
District Attorney Susan K. Treadaway said the sentence ensures Mimms is held accountable for “senselessly” taking a father from his child, according to FOX 5 Atlanta.
Charges and court order
Mimms was convicted of felony murder, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and was acquitted of malice murder. The judge also ordered that Mimms have no contact with the victim’s family. The sentence of life with the possibility of parole plus five years was imposed this week, according to the Blue Ridge Judicial Circuit.
Trial timeline
The trial opened on Jan. 26 and ran for about three weeks. Jurors returned their verdict on Feb. 13 after roughly eight hours of deliberation, local coverage noted. The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case, which was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Megan Hertel with assistance from Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Geoffrey Fogus, according to Atlanta News First.
Relatives and community members have largely stayed quiet in public since the sentencing, and authorities said the child’s mother was not at the house on the day of the shooting. With the case now closed and the punishment handed down, officials say it stands as a grim reminder of how custody disputes can spiral into irreversible violence.
