Prosecutors say Zachary Fuqua killed Erica Marie Sanders inside her home while children were there, then fled before police arrested him nearby.
MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. — A Macomb County judge ordered a 39-year-old Center Line man held without bond after prosecutors charged him with second-degree murder and five weapons counts in the shooting death of his girlfriend inside her home.
The court action moved a case from an evening police response into a closely watched prosecution centered on what authorities say happened in front of children inside a family kitchen. Zachary Fuqua is accused of killing Erica Marie Sanders, 38, on March 17. Prosecutors say three of Sanders’ four children, ages 5 to 17, were home at the time. The combination of a domestic setting, the ages of the children and the number of charges filed has made the early hearings the next key test in the case.
The charge sheet announced by Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido on March 20 laid out a broader criminal case than the initial police response alone suggested. Fuqua was charged with second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, possession of ammunition by a prohibited person and three counts of felony firearm. The prosecutor’s office said those were the maximum charges available under the law based on the evidence presented to that point. During arraignment before Judge Suzanne Faunce in 37th District Court, prosecutors argued the allegations were severe enough to justify holding Fuqua without bond. Faunce agreed and remanded him to custody, setting up two near term hearings that will determine how the case proceeds through the district court stage.
What prosecutors say happened inside the house has become the central fact pattern. They allege that at about 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17, Fuqua shot Sanders in the back of the head in the kitchen of her home on Sterling Street in Center Line. Officers who answered the call found Sanders suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. She died at the scene despite emergency aid. Authorities said Fuqua left on foot after the shooting. C and G Newspapers, citing a department press release, reported that officers later apprehended him at the corner of 10 Mile Road and Wainwright Street. Local television reports placed the home near Van Dyke Avenue and described the case as a domestic shooting that quickly escalated into a homicide investigation.
The prosecution’s account widened in court when Assistant Macomb County Prosecutor Jonathan Mycek described what he said happened as Fuqua left the home. Mycek said the defendant had “no qualms” about firing in the presence of three minor children. He then recounted an allegation that drew broader public notice, saying Fuqua handed candy to the children as he departed and told them, “Here y’all babies go.” That allegation was later repeated in national crime coverage. Authorities have not publicly released body camera footage, 911 audio or witness statements that would show exactly where each child was positioned inside the home. They also have not publicly described whether the children will be called as witnesses in later proceedings.
The record outside the courtroom filled in pieces of the days before and after the shooting. Law and Crime reported that a March 14 social media post attributed to Fuqua said, “Going out with a bang.” Local reports have not indicated whether investigators seized phones or online records as part of the case file, and prosecutors did not describe that post in the official press release announcing the charges. News coverage also varied slightly on the family count inside the home, with some reports saying all four children were present and later court descriptions emphasizing that three children were there during the alleged killing. The consistent public record is that multiple minors were at home, and prosecutors have framed that fact as part of the gravity of the case.
The legal calendar is now clear even if many factual questions remain open. Fuqua is scheduled for a probable cause conference at 8:45 a.m. April 1 before Judge John Chmura and for a preliminary exam April 8 before Faunce. At those hearings, prosecutors are expected to outline the evidence supporting the murder and gun charges, while the defense will have its first meaningful opportunity to contest parts of the case. At press time, one local report said no attorney was yet listed for Fuqua in court records. Second-degree murder in Michigan is punishable by life or any term of years, and the felony firearm counts each carry mandatory prison time if there is a conviction.
Even at this early stage, officials have framed the case as more than a routine homicide prosecution. Lucido said the allegations were “abhorrent” and described the loss to Sanders’ children and family as immeasurable. That statement did not add new evidence, but it underscored how prosecutors plan to present the human cost of the case alongside the criminal counts. In local coverage, the facts that Sanders was killed inside her own home and that children were present did as much to shape public reaction as the court schedule itself. The legal process now becomes the structure through which those allegations will be tested in public.
Fuqua remained in custody Tuesday, and the next milestone in the case was the probable cause conference set for April 1, followed by the April 8 preliminary exam. Until then, the public record consists mainly of the charge announcement, local police reporting and the statements prosecutors made in court.
Author note: Last updated April 14, 2026.