DETROIT (WXYZ) — On Monday, Desmond Burks appeared in court for the first day of a long-awaited preliminary hearing.
Watch the video report below:
Investigators say he shot and killed neurosurgeon Dr. Devon Hoover in April 2023.
Burks entered court with a smile on his face. Hoover's family was also in attendance and faced the suspect for the first time.
Investigators said Burks and Hoover had an intimate relationship, and Hoover sometimes paid Burks for sex. However, the prosecution did not get into that on day one of the hearing.
Instead, the prosecution started the day by playing a 911 call. It proved to be the first incident indicating Hoover might be in distress.
"It's a vehicle blocking my driveway," the 911 caller stated.
Watch coverage ahead of the preliminary hearing below:
A woman complained about a vehicle blocking her driveway on Coyle Street and said that she wasn't sure if it was stolen.
It was a white Range Rover.
The officer who responded to check out the Range Rover was the first witness to testify.
"So, I walked up to the vehicle, observed blood on the driver's seat, back seat, on the steering wheel of the vehicle," he told the prosecutor.
Previous coverage: Suspect in murder of Dr. Devon Hoover found competent to stand trial
The officer said he ran the license plate and determined the vehicle belonged to Devon Hoover. The prosecutor played an officer's body-worn camera as they performed wellness check at Hoover's home on Boston Boulevard, however, officers said no one responded to the front or back doors.
The second witness to testify was Burks' mother. The prosecutor played home surveillance footage that showed a man getting out of and walking away from the Range Rover. Burks' mother was asked if she recognized that man. She identified her son by the way he walks and said he limps because he was shot.
The prosecutor then asked, "Do you recognize something's he's wearing?"
"Leather jacket," Burks mother replied.
She said her and her other sons bought the jacket for him. Burks' mother is expected to be back on the stand Tuesday.
