Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr., U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan | Department of Justice
Aaron Height was sentenced on Apr. 23 to twenty-five years in federal prison after being convicted of felon in possession of a firearm, following a series of violent incidents that included shooting an unarmed man and multiple attacks on homes, according to United States Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr.
The sentencing comes after a crime spree by Height between late 2022 and early 2023. The case highlights concerns about repeat offenders and the consequences for public safety when such individuals are released on bond.
According to court records, Height began his offenses in October 2022 by shooting into a home and injuring a resident. He later fired into the same home two more times before being arrested during a traffic stop where police found a firearm in his car. Despite these events, he was granted bond with house arrest but violated it by threatening a witness. After another release on bond, Height assaulted another man over an argument about shoes, striking him with a liquor bottle and pouring household cleaner into the wound before ordering both the victim and an eyewitness to their knees at gunpoint and shooting the victim in the chest.
Height's criminal history includes convictions for felonious assault, assault or battery, arson, unarmed robbery, property crimes, and drug offenses spanning from 1998 to 2023.
"The failure to keep vicious criminals off the street has led to notorious murders in Charlotte and Chicago. The same failure happened here. This defendant spent decades committing crimes and hurting people and a state court still set this menace free to terrorize us. But thanks to the hard work of Detroit Police, the ATF, and my office, this man will spend the next 25 years in a federal prison," U.S. Attorney Gorgon said.
James Deir, Special Agent in Charge of ATF Detroit Field Division said: "Height is a poster child for ATF’s mission, to protect the public. Height was an urban terrorist who freely roamed the streets of Detroit and preyed upon our community members... With today’s sentence, the message is clear: Shooters beware - ATF and its partners are coming for you with one-way tickets on the accountability train destined for an extended stay in Federal prison."
