Brandon Spencer

Brandon Spencer, 27, a Black man, was killed in Detroit, Michigan on March 28, 2012.

In the public record of that year’s killings, his name appears on a running list of Detroit homicide victims, where his death is tied to a specific location: 15103 Stansbury. The same record describes 2012 as a punishing year for the city, noting a steep overall toll of violence that left hundreds dead.

But when it comes to what happened to Spencer—how he was attacked, who was with him, what ...