In the winter of 1986, Michelle Xavier, an 18-year-old female, was celebrating life as a recent graduate of Mission San Jose High School in Fremont, California. Described as a vibrant and beautiful young woman, she was enjoying a night out with her best friend, 20-year-old Jennifer Duey. The two had been friends since attending Notre Dame High School in San Jose together. Their plans for the evening of February 1st were simple and carefree, starting with a family birthday dinner. The night, however, would end in a tragedy that left the community shaken and a case that would remain cold for over three decades.
Earlier in the evening, Michelle and Jennifer attended a birthday dinner for a family member. They were last seen together at about 10:15 p.m. at a convenience store near the intersection of Farwell Drive and Mowry Avenue in Fremont. After that stop, the two friends seemingly vanished.
Their evening of youthful joy was violently interrupted, and their lives were brutally taken. Shortly after midnight on February 2, 1986, a motorcyclist traveling along the dark, winding Mill Creek Road in the hills above Mission Boulevard discovered a horrific scene. The naked bodies of Michelle and Jennifer were found on the side of the road; they had been shot and stabbed.
The discovery launched an intense investigation by the Fremont Police Department. Michelle’s 1984 Pontiac Sunbird convertible was found abandoned about three miles away in the parking lot of the Mission Valley Shopping Center. Investigators found no trace of the young women's purses, identification, or personal belongings. For months, detectives pursued thousands of leads and tips from a frightened community, but the case eventually went cold, leaving the families of Michelle and Jennifer without answers and a killer at large. For years, the case files gathered dust, and several notorious serial killers were even considered as possible suspects, but no definitive link could be made.
Decades passed, but investigators never completely gave up. In 2016, the Fremont Police Department's newly formed cold case unit took a fresh look at the evidence. Detective Jacob Blass began re-examining the case, and with the help of advancements in DNA technology, a breakthrough finally came. DNA evidence found under Jennifer Duey's fingernails in 2001 was matched to a man named David Emery Misch, a known criminal who was already serving a life sentence for the 1989 murder of Margaret Ball in Hayward. Misch, who lived in the area at the time of the 1986 murders, had a history of commercial burglary and drug use. Police believe the encounter between the women and Misch was a tragic instance of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, with no prior connection between them.
In 2018, more than 32 years after the murders, David Emery Misch was charged with two counts of murder for the deaths of Michelle Xavier and Jennifer Duey. During his trial in late 2024, prosecutors presented the crucial DNA evidence. They also revealed that a partial license plate number associated with Misch had been found written on one of the victim's hands. Misch had previously given a bizarre, recorded statement to police in 2003, claiming he saw the women being kidnapped at gunpoint and was scratched by one of them while trying to intervene—a story he later recanted. On December 19, 2024, a jury found David Misch guilty of two counts of first-degree murder.
In January 2025, Misch was sentenced to two consecutive terms of 25 years to life, in addition to the life sentence he was already serving. During the sentencing, he showed no remorse for his actions. Chief Assistant District Attorney Royl Roberts stated, "The families of these two young women have been waiting nearly 40 years to receive justice for their tragic and senseless murders. Thanks to the jury and this conviction, Mr. Misch will be held accountable." The conviction brought a long-awaited sense of closure to the families who had endured decades of uncertainty. In a joint statement, the Xavier and Duey families expressed their gratitude to the Fremont Police Department for their persistent dedication over 32 years. "We have been in constant contact with them, so we know how deeply they care and how hard they work," they said.
David Emery Misch, a serial killer, is also the primary suspect in the 1988 kidnapping and murder of 9-year-old Michaela Garecht in Hayward, a case for which he is still awaiting trial. The resolution of Michelle Xavier's murder serves as a testament to the unwavering commitment of law enforcement and the hope that, even after decades of silence, justice can still be found.
