A Wayne County jury this week acquitted two metro Detroit men, Javon Hawk and Joseph Houston, in the July 2025 shooting death of their cousin, 23-year-old Michael Davis, outside a Detroit apartment complex. The verdict closes out a case that once carried the threat of mandatory life imprisonment for both defendants.
Hawk, of Detroit, and Houston, of Sterling Heights, had been accused of killing Davis near the front entrance of an apartment complex on East Outer Drive, according to The Detroit News. Detroit police had responded to the shooting at around 3:31 a.m. on July 8, 2025, in the 4600 block of East Outer Drive near Van Dyke Road, where Davis was found inside the building's front entrance with multiple gunshot wounds, per the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Davis lived in Hamtramck, the enclave municipality bordering Detroit, at the time of his death, according to CBS News. Hoodline previously reported on the reward Detroit police offered for tips after the shooting, before either suspect had been identified.
A Month-Long Investigation Led to Arrests
Following a month-long investigation by the Detroit Police Department, officers arrested Javon Timarious Hawk on July 30, 2025, and Joseph Lavar Houston on August 4, 2025, the prosecutor's office said. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy subsequently charged Hawk with first-degree murder and felony firearm, while Houston faced first-degree murder, felony firearm, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
Both men were arraigned in Detroit's 36th District Court in August 2025. Under Michigan's court structure, felony cases originating in Detroit go through preliminary examinations in the 36th District Court before being bound over to the 3rd Judicial Circuit Court of Wayne County for trial, according to the 36th District Court.
What the Acquittal Meant Legally
Had either man been convicted, Michigan law left little room for leniency. Under Michigan Compiled Laws Section 750.316, an adult convicted of first-degree premeditated murder faces a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, according to the Michigan Legislature. A felony-firearm conviction would also have brought an additional prison term.
The acquittals on the murder charges meant the mandatory first-degree-murder penalty did not apply, but Houston was convicted of an additional felony-firearm count.
Part of a Broader Drop in Detroit Violence
The case unfolded against the backdrop of a historic decline in Detroit violent crime. The city recorded 165 homicides in 2025, a 19% decrease from 2024 and the lowest annual murder total reported by the Detroit Police Department since 1964, according to Michigan Public. Local authorities reported major reductions in homicides, nonfatal shootings, and carjackings across the city last year.
Worthy has served as Wayne County's chief prosecutor since 2004. Her office charged Hawk and Houston in August 2025, and both cousins were acquitted.
