Diane Burks, a 22-year-old Black/African American woman, left her sister's boyfriend's home on Littlefield Avenue on the evening of June 15, 1980, with the intention of returning to her own residence in Montrose. A young mother who had recently moved to Detroit from Chicago, she never made it home. The following day, her nearly nude body was discovered by a resident walking a dog in a secluded area known as 'The Easement,' a local lovers' lane.
Her hands were tied behind her back, and while she still had on her red slacks, her black high-heel sandals were found in nearby bushes. There was no identification on her person, suggesting a calculated effort by her killer to hinder the investigation.
The initial investigation by Detroit authorities led them to look into a brown-and-tan 1973 Cadillac belonging to the sister's boyfriend as they worked to piece together her last known movements. However, the isolated location where her body was found and the lack of eyewitnesses provided few immediate leads for detectives. Her death occurred during a period when a series of killings targeting women were happening across Detroit, with many victims being left in deserted or vacant areas, adding pressure on law enforcement to solve the cases.
In November 1980, the investigation took a significant turn when authorities publicly named 23-year-old basketball coach David J. Payton as a suspect in several murders, including that of Diane Burks. After intense interrogations that resulted in a false confession, Payton was cleared of the charges and later filed a lawsuit for $15 million, highlighting the chaotic nature of the investigation. Shortly after Payton's arrest was publicized, police apprehended Donald Murphy, a convicted sex offender and bank robber, following the abduction and assault of another woman who survived and was able to identify him.
Donald Murphy went on to confess to his involvement in several homicides that occurred during that time and was ultimately convicted for two of them. Although investigators have long considered Murphy a strong suspect in Diane Burks's murder due to similarities in the timing, location, and manner of death with his other crimes, he was never formally tried for her killing. As a result, Diane Burks's case remains officially unsolved.
