A Canton Township man who stabbed his mother, brother and sister outside their family home last fall has been sentenced to 6 to 11 years in prison, closing out a case that once carried the possibility of life behind bars. Derek Attee Alesmaily, now 23, pleaded guilty in August to a single count of assault with intent to murder and was ordered to pay $1,898 in fees and costs on top of his prison term.
Alesmaily entered his plea on August 5 in Wayne County's 3rd Circuit Court, according to ClickOnDetroit. In exchange for that plea, prosecutors dismissed eight other felony charges he had faced, including two additional counts of assault with intent to murder, three counts of assault with intent to do great bodily harm, three counts of felonious assault, and two counts of resisting or obstructing a police officer. The deal sharply reduced his sentencing exposure from multiple charges that were each eligible for a potential life sentence.
The attack happened on October 14, 2025, when Canton police and fire crews rushed to a home on the 3700 block of Parklawn Drive, according to FOX 2 Detroit. Investigators say Alesmaily stabbed three family members: his 42-year-old mother, his 21-year-old brother — both Canton Township residents — and his 22-year-old sister, who lives in Dearborn. All three were hospitalized in serious but stable condition, per the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office.
Victims Found in the Driveway and Street
Wayne County prosecutors reported that responding officers found two of the victims lying in the driveway of the residence, with the third found in the road outside. Fox 2's reporting adds that one victim was found a few doors down in the street, and neighbors told the station they saw two women and a man suffering from stab wounds, with one possibly stabbed in the upper chest or arm area. Canton police took Alesmaily into custody at the scene and identified him as a family member of the victims.
The home sits inside the River Meadow Subdivision near Geddes and Beck Roads, according to CBS News Detroit. Neighbors on Parklawn Drive told local reporters that police had responded to the home several times over the two years before the stabbing due to repeated domestic disputes, the outlet's reporting noted.
A Recent Parolee With a Violent Record
Court records show Alesmaily had a prior criminal history that included convictions for bank robbery and failing to stop at the scene of an accident, and he had been released on parole just months before the October attack, per ClickOnDetroit's reporting. That background initially led prosecutors to pursue habitual offender sentencing enhancements alongside the original ten charges.
At his arraignment in October, 35th District Court Judge Michael Gerou set a $3 million cash bond with no 10 percent option and ordered mandatory GPS tethering if Alesmaily were ever released, court records show. Defense attorney Andrew Stacer said at the time that his client was eager to examine the evidence, noting that family-involved domestic cases often present a variety of resolution options — a comment that foreshadowed the plea deal reached this month.
Case Tied to Domestic Violence Awareness Efforts
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy noted when the charges were filed that the assault coincided with National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, while Canton Police Deputy Chief Edward Johnson pointed local residents toward crisis resources through First Step's 24-hour helpline. Under Michigan law, assault with intent to commit murder is punishable by life in prison or any term of years, though the negotiated plea ultimately resulted in the 6-to-11-year sentence handed down this week.
-4.webp?w=160&h=400&fit=crop&crop=edges)
