In a case that has drawn attention in Detroit, Desmond Burks has pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of Dr. Devon Hoover, a respected neurosurgeon, as well as separate manslaughter charges resulting from a road rage incident that occurred in April 2024. According to WWJ Newsradio 950, the plea agreement was made mid-jury selection, concluding what might have been a protracted legal battle.
Dr. Hoover was found dead in his Boston-Edison home on April 23, 2023. According to the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office, he was found facedown, wearing only socks, and wrapped in a blood-soaked carpet. An autopsy reported that Hoover had been shot twice in the back of the head, and his personal belongings, including cash, credit cards, and designer watches, were missing. Burks’s attorney, Gabby Silver, described the sentence as “This was a mid-guideline range sentence on Murder Two,” noting that Hoover would have served 25 years under any circumstance.
The details of the relationship between Burks and Dr. Hoover were controversial, with witnesses claiming that the two had been lovers and that financial exchanges were a part of their interactions. According to The Detroit News, prosecutors had intended to present a trove of text messages between them as evidence. Burks had also admitted to taking items from Hoover post-mortem during his plea in court.
As part of the plea, Burks confessed to larceny of $20,000 or more and using a computer to commit a crime, among other charges. Burks also acknowledged his role in the death of Reda Saleh, the 67-year-old victim of the subsequent road rage event. According to CBS Detroit, "Burks is accused of punching 67-year-old Reda Saleh and leaving him in the roadway in a road rage incident." A surveillance camera captured Burks driving Hoover's Range Rover after the murder, further linking him to the crime.
Under the plea agreement, Desmond Burks is scheduled for sentencing on Feb. 20. He faces 35 to 60 years for the second-degree murder of Dr. Hoover, with an additional five years for the weapons charge, and a separate plea in connection with Saleh’s manslaughter. The cumulative sentence could keep Burks in prison for a minimum of 40 years.
