In the quiet Heritage Hill neighborhood of Grand Rapids, Michigan, 63-year-old Glenn Converse was living out his final days under hospice care in his apartment. His life, however, was not to end from his terminal illness. On May 26, 2014, his body was discovered, and the circumstances immediately surrounding his death were deemed suspicious by investigators.
Neighbors would later recall hearing a fight in his apartment a few nights prior, a detail that took on a grim significance in the wake of the discovery. An autopsy conducted by the Kent County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed the suspicions of foul play, officially ruling Converse's death a homicide.
The investigation into the death of the terminally ill man unfolded, yet for years, the case grew cold, leaving family and the community without answers. The silence was finally broken in July 2020, when a woman named Heather Laureen Wright was arrested and indicted on a perjury charge connected to the investigation into Converse's death. This proved to be a significant turning point in the long-dormant case.
After three months of testimony presented before a Circuit Court judge, a grand jury indicted Heather Laureen Wright on a charge of open murder in connection with the death of Glenn Converse. The indictment, announced in August 2020, was the culmination of renewed efforts by the Grand Rapids Police Department's Detective Unit. The open murder charge carries with it the potential for a life sentence in prison. Following the indictment, Wright was arraigned and held at the Kent County Correctional Facility.
