In the summer of 2025, a young woman's life was cut tragically short in her Belleville, Michigan, home, leaving a community in shock and a family searching for answers. Haleigh Pace, a 24-year-old White/Caucasian female, was found critically wounded from a gunshot on June 29, 2025, in the Holiday West Mobile Home Community. Despite initial reports suggesting a self-inflicted wound, the circumstances surrounding her death quickly raised suspicions among investigators, turning a supposed suicide into a complex homicide case.
On that fateful day, a 911 call was placed by Haleigh's live-in boyfriend, 39-year-old David Paul McPherson, who claimed that she had shot herself in the head. First responders arrived at the Montana Street residence to a grim scene, and Haleigh was pronounced dead that same day. However, as detectives from the Sumpter Township Police Department began their investigation, the evidence at the scene and subsequent findings began to contradict the initial report of suicide. The case was soon reclassified as a suspicious death, and the focus of the investigation turned towards the events that transpired within the home.
Weeks of meticulous investigation by law enforcement officials led them to believe that Haleigh's death was not an act of her own, but rather a homicide. Evidence accumulated, painting a picture that was inconsistent with McPherson's initial account. This led police to seek charges against him, and on July 31, 2025, David Paul McPherson was arrested. The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office authorized charges of second-degree murder and felony firearm against him in connection with Haleigh Pace's death.
McPherson was arraigned while in custody on July 31 at the 34th District Court. He faced charges of second-degree homicide and felony firearm possession. His bond was set at $100,000, with the condition of a GPS tether and no contact with the protected party if he were to be released. Furthermore, he was ordered to forfeit all firearms to the police department and was prohibited from purchasing or possessing any new firearms. A probable cause conference was scheduled for August 13, with a preliminary exam set for August 20. Family members described Haleigh as a dedicated mother to her young son, working two jobs to provide for him, and insisted that taking her own life was completely out of character for her. As the legal proceedings against McPherson began, the only publicly identified suspect in the case, a community mourned the loss of a young mother and awaited justice.
