A man in Elyria, Ohio, was sentenced to five years in prison after he pleaded guilty to driving under the influence. Shockingly, this is the man’s 16th conviction, with the earliest recorded one dating back to 1999.
As reported by The Chronicle, 45-year-old Duran Mims was sentenced on Tuesday, May 26. While his trial was set to start on the same date, he chose to plead guilty himself to his charges.
In connection with his latest DUI incident, he pleaded guilty to two counts of felony driving under the influence with repeat offender specifications and driving under suspension. Lorain County Common Pleas Judge Melissa Kobasher sentenced him to five years behind bars, as well as a mandatory fine of $1540. His driver’s license was suspended for five years.
Mims’ past convictions are connected to incidents spanning past decades. His latest one, shockingly, was not the most serious of the bunch.
16th DUI Conviction
The latest DUI incident occurred back on April 19, 2025. According to the Loran County Prosecutor’s Office, a Highway Patrol trooper conducted a traffic stop on Interstate 90 after he saw Mims’ vehicle committing multiple lane violations.
Mims stopped his Ford SUV, and the trooper approached. The now-45-year-old man was seen with watery eyes, and the trooper noticed a strong smell of alcohol.
The Ohio man was unable to recite the alphabet from letters D to Q, and then refused to partake in any chemical tests. As a result, he was arrested for the charges mentioned above.
15th DUI Conviction
Mims’ 15th DUI conviction is connected to an incident that occurred back on June 18, 2020. As reported by WOIO, Elyria Police Department officers responded to Lake Avenue to find a car that had crashed into a tree stump.
Duran Mims was found at the scene and identified as the driver. Officers described him as sluggish, and he had issues responding to their questions. Additionally, he had bloodshot eyes and noticed an alcohol smell coming from him.
Shortly after, police found around 10 cans of Twisted Tea, a caffeinated alcoholic beverage. Similar to the 2025 incident, he refused to take a test and was even hostile toward officers and first responders. In December 2022, he was sentenced to one year and four months in prison for driving while intoxicated.
Past Convictions
Besides his 2020 case, six of Mims’ previous convictions appear in Ohio’s Habitual Offender Registry. Convictions include two in 2017, one in 2013, two in 2009, and one in 2008.
The Chronicle, however, revealed that Mims’ even older convictions are not available in the registry. These include two in 2005, one in 2001, and four in 1999.
Mims will serve his latest sentence concurrently with a previous one. In February 2026, the same judge sentenced him to nine months in prison for illegal conveyance of drugs, tampering with evidence, and possession of drugs.