Monalisa McMillian, a 19-year-old African American woman from Whiteville, NC, tragically lost her life on April 28, 2020. The incident occurred when she leapt from a moving vehicle during an argument with her boyfriend, William Jacoby Singletary. Witnesses reported seeing McMillian jump from a silver Mazda 6 traveling at approximately 55 mph. She ran to a neighboring yard and collapsed, never regaining consciousness.
First responders found Singletary kneeling over her lifeless body, and she was pronounced dead upon arrival at Columbus Regional Hospital.
The investigation revealed that McMillian had sustained a gunshot wound to the left side of her back, which perforated her liver, stomach, and diaphragm, ultimately causing her death. Singletary, who was arrested at the scene, initially claimed that McMillian had jumped from the car during an argument about him texting other women. However, ballistics testing confirmed that the bullet found in McMillian's body matched a .22 caliber pistol and a spent shell casing found in Singletary's vehicle.
Singletary was charged with second-degree murder and found guilty by a Columbus County jury on April 28, 2022, exactly two years after McMillian's death. He was sentenced to serve between 31 and 38 years in prison. The trial court entered judgment imposing an aggravated prison sentence of 375 to 462 months. Singletary appealed the verdict, but the Court of Appeals of North Carolina upheld the decision, finding no error in the jury's verdict or the judgment entered thereon.
