The retrial of Stephon L. Roby, the 34-year-old man accused of fatally shooting his mother and 11-year-old sister inside their Hess Street home in 2013, began with opening statements from prosecutors and the defense.
Roby is charged with two counts of first-degree murder, three counts of felony firearm, and one count of felon in possession of a firearm in the deaths of Leigh A. King, 42, and Sharleea A. King, 11, according to MLive. Leigh King was Roby's mother, and Sharleea was his younger sister, a sixth grader at Francis Reh Academy. Leigh King, according to the same report, enjoyed cooking and styling hair.
The case proceeded with opening statements from prosecutors and the defense.
Competing Accounts and Disputed Evidence
The case involves differing positions from prosecutors and the defense.
The retrial concerns the events inside the Hess Street house.
A Case Overturned, Then Sent Back to Trial
Roby was convicted of killing his mother and sister and sentenced to life in prison, according to a report at the time carried by the Washington Times.
His case later reached the Michigan Court of Appeals, which issued an opinion in 2024, according to the appellate opinion published by Justia Law.
The case remained pending as it awaited retrial. ABC12 News reported that a jury had been seated for the retrial.
Defense Opening Statement
The defense made an opening statement.
The retrial will determine whether Roby is convicted of first-degree premeditated murder as jurors weigh competing accounts of what happened inside the Hess Street house nearly 13 years ago.
