By: Brian Wells | Roseville-Eastpointe Eastsider | Published January 18, 2025
EASTPOINTE — An Eastpointe man was sentenced to four years in prison Jan. 7 in Macomb County Circuit Court after pleading guilty to fatally shooting his brother in their home in Eastpointe in 2023.
At approximately 3:30 p.m. June 16, 2023, a male subject entered the Eastpointe Police Department and stated that his uncle was possibly murdered in a home in the 16000 block of Stricker Avenue, in the general area of Eight Mile Road and Gratiot Avenue, according to a June 2023 press release from the department.
Officers and detectives conducted an investigation at the home and were able to locate the suspect, who was then interviewed and taken into custody. Officers also located signs of foul play.
A press release sent the same month by the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office stated that the suspect, identified as McKinnley Hearon, had told officers that his brother was not home, but police said the body was located behind the house. The Prosecutor’s Office stated in a press release that McKinnley Hearon shot his brother after an argument.
McKinnley Hearon, now 44, of Eastpointe, pleaded guilty to shooting his brother, Reginald Hearon, in their Eastpointe home on Thursday, June 15, 2023. McKinnley Hearon was charged with second-degree murder, a life felony; tampering with evidence, a four-year felony; and lying to police officers, a misdemeanor carrying a maximum sentencing of 93 days.
On Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024, he pleaded guilty as charged.
According to a press release from the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office, Reginald Hearon was struggling with violent mental health issues. Dawn Fraylick, communications director for the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office, said Reginald Hearon had violent tendencies, though she didn’t know what he was diagnosed with.
“After taking into consideration the extenuating circumstances, a potential self-defense claim and the family’s wishes, the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office reached an agreement with the defense attorney for a sentence recommendation within manslaughter guidelines,” the press release states.
After Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Julie Gatti approved the agreement, Hearon was sentenced Jan. 7 to a total of four years in prison on all charges, the release states.
Defense attorney Jeffery Cojocar said he felt that the sentencing was the best thing for the family, especially his client’s mother. Additionally, he added that the circumstances could have led to a self-defense claim, if the case had gone to trial.
“McKinnley is her last surviving child and I think she wanted to be able to spend as much time with him in the future as possible, and the way that would be accomplished was a lower sentence,” Cojocar said.