In the late afternoon of March 25, 2020, a 911 call shattered the quiet of a community near Parrish, Alabama. Michael Gene Bolin, 38 years old at the time, reported a burglary at the home he shared with his girlfriend, 50-year-old Stacey Hogan Campbell, also known as Stacey Hogan. He told the dispatcher that he had returned to their residence on the 4000 block of Highway 269 to find a scene of disarray and Stacey unresponsive. When Walker County Sheriff's deputies arrived at approximately 2:45 p.m., they found Ms. Campbell deceased on the floor.
Investigators at the scene quickly began to question the narrative of a burglary gone wrong. The initial assessment of Stacey Hogan Campbell’s injuries suggested she had died from blunt force trauma. As the investigation deepened, the focus shifted from an unknown intruder to the man who had made the emergency call. Discrepancies began to emerge between Bolin's account of events and the stories told by witnesses. The authorities also uncovered a troubled history of domestic violence that had plagued the couple's relationship.
Under questioning, Bolin’s story began to unravel. Sheriff's Investigator Carl Carpenter noted that Bolin eventually admitted to a physical altercation with Hogan the night before her body was discovered. He claimed that after their fight, he left the residence and only found her deceased upon his return. This admission, coupled with the evidence gathered, led to a significant turning point in the case.
Authorities arrested Michael Gene Bolin and charged him with the murder of Stacey Hogan Campbell. The legal proceedings that followed would ultimately bring a resolution to the case, though not one that could undo the tragedy. In June of 2022, Michael Gene Bolin pleaded guilty to the murder of his girlfriend. He was subsequently sentenced to serve 20 years in prison for the crime, bringing an end to a case that highlighted the devastating consequences of domestic violence.
