It was a crime of passion, driven by jealousy and greed.
Two gunshots fired execution-style into the back of the head extinguished the life of Dr Devon Hoover, one of Detroit’s brightest and most beloved neurosurgeons.
The 53-year-old bachelor was found the following day, facedown, wearing only one sock, wrapped in a blood-soaked carpet and concealed in the crawl space of his sprawling $2.5 million mansion in Detroit’s historic Boston-Edison District.
More than $90,000 worth of Hoover’s personal property was missing from the home, including his phone, credit cards, two Cartier watches and his white Range Rover. More than $30,000 was also siphoned from his accounts in fraudulent transactions after his death.
The investigation would quickly reveal that, in his private life, Hoover engaged in discreet, consensual relationships with other men that occasionally included payment and sometimes involved more than one partner.
Police say the dynamic complicated the investigation, with witnesses reluctant to come forward with information, but later proved central to understanding the events leading up to Hoover’s April 2023 death.
An arrest would not come for more than a year, until Desmond Burks, a man with whom Hoover had an intimate, transactional relationship, was charged with first-degree murder in August 2024.
Months of legal wrangling followed, with Burks’s trial delayed numerous times. Then, to the surprise of even his own attorneys, Burks, 35, took a plea deal to a reduced charge of second-degree murder on Wednesday, during the second day of jury selection.
Loved ones of Hoover voiced relief that justice had finally arrived, and in the nick of time, sparing them the hardship of a trial and preventing further details of Hoover’s private life from entering the public record.
Devon Hoover, 53, was found wrapped in a blood-soaked carpet with two gunshot wounds to the back of his head
His body was discovered in a crawl space in his $2.5million mansion in Detroit, in April 2023
He regularly threw parties at his home for various occasions and fundraisers. The image above was captured in 2019
Among them is Meri Slaven, who knew Hoover for almost 20 years. In an interview with the Daily Mail, moments before Burks’ plea was entered, she said: ‘Nothing is going to bring Devon back, unfortunately. What’s done is done.
‘But I just hope this guy gets the maximum sentence possible, and he’s forced to spend the rest of his life behind bars, thinking about what he’s done, without parole.’
Hoover’s family also shared a brief statement after Burks’s plea was entered, saying they were relieved and ‘glad that a long and difficult trial will not be necessary.’
The truth and full extent of Hoover and Burks’s shared history may never be known.
Rumors circulated quietly in and around Detroit about Hoover’s private life and the men he associated with, hinting at a double life far removed from his carefully curated public image.
What is known, according to prosecutors, is that Hoover and Burks were involved in an ongoing intimate relationship for some time, evidenced by more than 4,000 text messages exchanged between them, and that, on occasion, Burks charged Hoover for sexual services.
In a pre-trial hearing last summer, prosecutors alleged that the unemployed Burks maintained a network of wealthy lovers whom he charged for sex and relied upon to bankroll his lifestyle, buying him food, clothes, phones, and paying his bills.
His partners, both male and female, gave him rides, rented cars, and booked hotel rooms for him. One even handled his taxes.
Meri Slaven said she hopes the Hoover family can finally find peace – without any more of Hoover’s private life being shared publicly
Desmond Burkes pleaded guilty to Hoover’s murder on Wednesday during jury selection for his trial
Hoover was among several well-to-do suitors in Burks’s orbit. But in the days before the murder, prosecutors said Burks became consumed by a twofold jealousy.
First, he was envious of Hoover’s wealth.
Hoover was a board-certified neurosurgeon at Ascension St. John Hospital. Neurosurgeons in Michigan typically earn between $700,000 and $1 million annually, according to industry salary data.
He also lived in one of Detroit’s most luxurious homes, filled with artwork, high-end furnishings and other expensive wares, Slaven said.
Second, prosecutors said Burks was angered by Hoover’s decision to invite another man to watch the pair have sex in Detroit’s Palmer Park just days before the killing.
In a text exchange on April 22, 2023, the day before Hoover was found dead, Hoover asked Burks whether he wanted to invite the third man back to watch them again.
‘I’m good on that unless you payin [sic],’ Burks replied, according to court testimony. ‘I didn’t like it… I just did it for you.’
The following day, Hoover drove to Burks’s home to pick him up and bring him back to his mansion for sex. Prosecutors say that by then, Burks had a different plan in mind.
Burks pinned Hoover down, pressed the muzzle of a 9mm handgun to the back of his head and fired twice before concealing his body in the crawl space.
Hoover was one of the most prominent neurosurgeons in the state of Michigan, specializing in neck and back treatment
He ransacked the home for cash, credit cards and valuables, including two Cartier watches valued at roughly $15,000, and fled in Hoover’s $80,000 Range Rover.
Burks returned home in the stolen vehicle and began transferring thousands of dollars from Hoover’s bank account to himself.
He later visited a jewelry store at Fairlane Mall, where surveillance footage showed him fanning a large stack of money while purchasing diamond earrings and a pendant.
Several of Burks’s other lovers later told investigators they began receiving hundreds of dollars via Cash App from Hoover’s account, followed by messages from Burks urging them to delete their accounts.
Another lover said Burks asked him to purchase Cartier sunglasses using one of Hoover’s credit cards.
Prosecutors also said Burks leaned on his network to help conceal evidence. Within hours, he deleted his messages with Hoover, changed his phone number, and gave one lover a bag containing the murder weapon and Hoover’s surgical glasses.
That man later disposed of the evidence and drove Burks to the Rouge River, where Burks threw the gun into the water, according to testimony.
Hoover’s family alerted police after he failed to show for a scheduled visit to Indiana to see his dying mother, who passed away four days later. His body was discovered during a welfare check.
Burks was taken into custody a week later wearing one of Hoover’s missing watches, but was released after investigators lacked sufficient evidence to charge him.
While Burks was in custody, and 24 hours before Hoover was laid to rest, the doctor’s home was burglarized. What was taken has never been publicly disclosed, and no one has been charged.
Rumors circulated quietly in and around Detroit about Hoover’s private life and the men he associated with, hinting at a double life
Burks will be sentenced on February 20 and faces the possibility of life in prison
Investigators later said the murder case stalled as witnesses were initially reluctant to disclose details of their associations with Burks.
More than 80 witnesses were ultimately interviewed and 300 pieces of evidence collected. Several of Burks’s lovers later testified anonymously under immunity agreements.
Burks was arrested again in August 2024 and charged with first-degree murder.
After multiple delays, his trial began Tuesday. Twenty-four hours later, he accepted a plea deal to second-degree murder, halting what was expected to be a six-week trial.
Burks also pleaded guilty to manslaughter in an unrelated case involving a fatal road rage incident in April 2025 as part of the agreement.
He will be sentenced on February 20 and faces the possibility of life in prison.
For Slaven, the past two years have been difficult to comprehend.
She first met Hoover in 2004 while performing as a jazz singer at a popular LGBTQ bar in Detroit.
Hoover frequently hosted elaborate parties at his mansion, booking Slaven to perform at 15 of them over the next two decades.
‘I didn’t know anything about a double life – I knew he was gay, and I knew he dated, but nothing beyond that,’ said Slaven.
‘He was just extremely kind, charming, generous, and always so nice. He was well-loved. He was a great surgeon. His patients adored him. He was a great member of the community. I just hope his family finds peace now.’
