Slidell man convicted of raping, shooting teen girl | News

A judge in New Orleans this week sentenced a young man to life in prison and his two accomplices to 15 years in prison for their roles in Rape and serious injury to two teenage girls two years ago.

Last month, a jury convicted Jordan Mitchell21, of two counts of attempted first-degree murder and one count each of first-degree rape, second-degree kidnapping and armed robbery in the June 19, 2022 incident. Prosecutors argued that Mitchell, with the assistance of accomplices Zaykis Bolden and Dylan Johnson, Both 19, I drove two teenage girls from St. Tammany Parish to New Orleans, where Mitchell was raped the 15 year old girl as her younger friend watched.

Then, prosecutors say, Mitchell shot both girls and the young men abandoned them on the side of the Chef Menteur Highway in the Venetian Islands. The older girl lost an eye; the younger one was paralyzed.

Mitchell’s lawyers argued that prosecutors had not proven that the older teen was raped or kidnapped.

Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Judge Rhonda Goode-Douglas imposed a mandatory life sentence on Mitchell on Thursday. She also sentenced Bolden and Johnson, who were convicted of attempted murder, to 15 years in prison. The maximum penalty for attempted murder is 20 years in prison.

Although neither Bolden nor Johnson were accused of raping or shooting the girls, prosecutors accused them of perpetrating the crimes, and they had faced the same charges as Mitchell.

Bolden and Johnson’s attorneys argued in court that their clients had been unfortunate bystanders of Mitchell’s criminal actions, and the jury ultimately found them guilty of the lesser offense but acquitted them of all other charges.

In a press release, Assistant District Attorney Penny Kissinger said prosecutors “are grateful that we were able to obtain these sentences for the survivors.” What these young women went through is horrific, and we hope that they continue to live a fulfilling life after this trauma “Be able to lead a productive life.”

Both girls gave victim impact statements before the men were sentenced. Bolden alone spoke to apologize, according to his defense attorney Michael Kennedy.