In the early evening of September 23, 2020, police responded to a report of a deceased man in a pickup truck in the area of Michigan Avenue and Schlaff Street in Dearborn, Michigan. Upon arrival, they discovered the body of Darius Whiting, a 48-year-old man from Farmington Hills. An investigation determined that he had died from multiple gunshot wounds.
Authorities stated that the shooting did not appear to be a random act.
The investigation into the death of the male victim led to the arrest of a suspect five months after the incident. The individual taken into custody was identified as Robert Lee Bailey, Jr., a 54-year-old man from Detroit with a prior criminal history. At the time of Whiting's death, Bailey was on parole after being released from prison in June 2020 for a previous second-degree murder conviction.
Prosecutors allege that Darius Whiting was killed on September 22, 2020, during the course of an armed robbery. Bailey was subsequently charged with first-degree murder, felony murder, armed robbery, felon in possession of a firearm, and four counts of second-degree felony firearm. An initial trial for Bailey resulted in a mistrial. A retrial was later underway in Wayne County's third judicial circuit, with Judge Mark Slavens presiding over the case.
