In the winter of 2019, the life of 27-year-old Christopher 'Chris' Dickerson of Weston, Michigan, was tragically cut short. His story took a dark turn after he was reported missing by his mother on February 18, 2019, sparking a search that would end in heartbreak. Just days later, on February 23, a tip led investigators to a wooded area in Medina Township, where they discovered Dickerson's body.
An investigation quickly determined that he had been the victim of a homicide, having been shot multiple times.
The investigation into Dickerson's death, a collaborative effort between the Lenawee County Sheriff's Office, Adrian City Police, and Michigan State Police, soon uncovered a sinister plot rooted in gang-related activities. In the early morning hours of January 22, 2019, long before he was reported missing, Dickerson had entered the wooded area between Munson and Meyerholtz Highways and Morenci and Wabash Roads with two other men. It was there that detectives believe Austin Keith Richardson, then 24, drew a concealed 9mm handgun and fatally shot Dickerson multiple times.
Following an intensive investigation that spanned nearly three months, authorities made arrests in connection with the murder. Austin Keith Richardson of Adrian was charged with a litany of felonies, including homicide-open murder, gang membership felonies, carrying a concealed weapon, and carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent. Another Adrian man, David Curtis Taylor, 33 at the time, was also taken into custody and charged with being an accessory after the fact to the murder. Court documents allege that Taylor assisted Richardson by disposing of the murder weapon.
The arrests brought a measure of relief to Dickerson's grieving family, who had waited anxiously for answers. His mother, Tracena Dickerson, expressed her profound loss and disbelief that anyone could commit such a horrific act, stating that the perpetrators had taken someone irreplaceable from the world. The cases against both Richardson and Taylor then proceeded to move through the Lenawee County court system.
