After a June 30 preliminary exam, a Warren resident accused of livestreaming a six-hour police standoff following a December stabbing has been bound over on one count of first-degree murder. The ruling moves the case to Macomb County Circuit Court, where a circuit-court arraignment is set for later this month. The Dec. 12 stabbing left a 29-year-old chef dead inside a Westminster Avenue home.
Court ruling and next hearing
Dominick Robinson, 31, of Warren, was ordered to stand trial after a June 30 preliminary exam in 37th District Court and is scheduled for arraignment in Macomb County Circuit Court at 1:30 p.m. on July 13. In a news release, Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido said his office will prosecute this case with the seriousness it demands. As reported by ClickOnDetroit, Robinson has been in custody since Dec. 12.
What investigators say happened
Police say the victim was 29-year-old Mucari Finley, a Flint native who worked as a chef in Metro Detroit, and that he died from multiple stab wounds inside Robinson’s home. The hours-long standoff that followed was streamed on Facebook Live. In that video, Robinson made statements and alleged that Finley had sold drugs to the suspect’s partner, a claim investigators say has not been confirmed. Authorities negotiated with Robinson for hours before he surrendered, and the livestream now forms part of the case evidence, according to WXYZ.
Family pushes back on online narrative
Finley’s family, alarmed by what they describe as a wave of misinformation after the livestream, has tried to reclaim his memory in public. They held a vigil outside the house where he was killed. “He was an amazing chef,” friend Candice Wroblewski told reporters, and relatives say Finley had no criminal history and was not a drug dealer. The family has also suggested Finley may have been “catfished” on a dating app and urged people not to share violent clips from the incident, per CBS Detroit.
Legal stakes and evidence questions
Robinson is charged with first-degree premeditated murder, an offense in Michigan that can carry a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for adult defendants. Before the bind-over, the district court ordered a mental-health evaluation and set bond at $2 million cash, with no 10 percent option, which has kept Robinson behind bars as the case moves forward, as reported by WWJ. Michigan law on first-degree murder requires a life-without-parole sentence for adults who are convicted; for background on the statute and penalties, see LegalClarity.
What to expect next
Robinson is scheduled to be arraigned before Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Julie Gatti at 1:30 p.m. on July 13, a hearing that will formally launch the circuit-court phase of the case. Defense motions are expected, including potential fights over how the Facebook Live video is used in court. Prosecutors say the preliminary-exam ruling reflects what they call an abundance of evidence and have vowed to pursue the case aggressively. As reported by ClickOnDetroit, the arraignment will be the first major step toward moving the matter to trial.
