A Thursday night stop in a quiet parking lot behind a southwest Durham elementary school ended in tragedy, and police say the story that followed has not held up.
An 18-year-old Durham man is charged with first-degree murder after his girlfriend, 18-year-old Hailee Maye, was found fatally shot in a car behind Southwest Elementary School in May 2025. Investigators say the boyfriend first claimed Maye accidentally shot herself, but court records describe surveillance footage, search-warrant findings and a tight timeline that tell a very different story.
As reported by The News & Observer, court documents say the couple’s vehicle pulled into the lot at about 7:03 p.m. on May 15, 2025. Roughly 40 minutes later, the suspect is seen leaving the car alone. Investigators say he did not call 911 for more than eight minutes after walking away and was captured on video wiping his socks on a patch of grass two minutes before finally placing the call just before 8 p.m. Search-warrant material states that Maye had been shot in the head and was pronounced dead at the scene.
What Investigators Say Does Not Add Up
Durham police say that stretch of unexplained time, along with what they found on video and at the scene, shifted the case from a reported accident to a full-on homicide investigation. According to investigators, the suspect told officers that Maye had been “playing with a gun” in the car when it “went off.” Detectives now say the physical and digital evidence they have collected does not line up with that account.
Case summaries provided to prosecutors say the teen later invoked his right to an attorney and declined to answer additional questions. From that point, the paper trail and camera footage have done most of the talking.
Remembering Hailee Maye
While detectives work the case, friends and classmates have been focused on remembering Maye herself. Those who knew her have described her as energetic, kind and determined. Public tributes and an online fundraising page say she had been planning to start nursing classes, a goal that friends say fit her caring personality.
In the weeks after her death, social media filled with photos, memories and condolences. Community members also set up donation pages to support her family as they organized funeral services and remembrances.
Court Status And What Comes Next
According to court records reported by The News & Observer, the boyfriend has been formally charged with first-degree murder. A judge set his bail at $1,000,000, and the case is scheduled for discussion on October 16, 2026. His attorney has publicly maintained that Maye’s death was “a tragic accident,” and the defendant has remained in custody since his arrest.
Why The Clock Matters In Cases Like This
Experts say it is not unusual for a death first reported as accidental or self-inflicted to come under renewed scrutiny once investigators unpack the details. Timelines, phone records and surveillance clips often become crucial in domestic and intimate-partner cases, where there may be no other witnesses.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Violent Death Reporting System has found that many homicides of women are linked to intimate-partner violence, which is one reason investigators pay such close attention to call timing, forensic details and linked records when determining what happened. CDC analyses highlight how building a clear sequence of events can help clarify both cause and manner of death.
Prosecutors and detectives say the Durham case remains an active investigation as it moves through the court calendar and more records are reviewed. Officials have asked anyone who was in the area that evening, or who may have surveillance or cellphone video from around Southwest Elementary School that night, to contact the Durham Police Department’s tip line.
