Tracie Golden, a 53-year-old Black woman, was a beloved wife, mother, and dedicated respiratory therapist in Detroit. For a decade, she worked at Sinai-Grace Hospital, where she also served as a chief union steward. Her husband, John Golden Jr., called her his rock; the two were college sweethearts who had rekindled their romance after 30 years apart.
On the evening of December 28, 2022, just days after Christmas, Golden stopped at a liquor store on Grand River Avenue for juice on her way home from work. As she walked to her vehicle, a man ambushed her in the parking lot. He shot her in the stomach, stole her keys and other valuables, and fled in her charcoal gray 2018 Dodge Journey. First responders rushed Golden to Sinai-Grace, but she succumbed to her injuries at the hospital where she had saved so many lives.
Detroit Police Chief James White called the murder a "cowardly act" that took one of the community's best. An intensive investigation began immediately.
The day after the shooting, Golden’s stolen SUV was recovered at the scene of an armed robbery at a Family Dollar store on East 7 Mile Road. Investigators used surveillance video from both crime scenes to connect the incidents and identify a suspect.
On January 13, 2023, police arrested 19-year-old Bradley Doss Thurman. The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office charged him with a series of felonies, including first-degree murder, felony murder, armed robbery, and multiple felony firearm violations. Authorities determined the motive was robbery and that Golden was a random victim, killed for what her husband later said was $13 and her vehicle. Thurman was arraigned and held on a $4 million cash bond.
In November 2023, Thurman accepted a plea agreement. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to serve 28 to 50 years in prison. During an emotional sentencing hearing, Golden’s daughter, Bianca Alexander, addressed Thurman, saying, "You don’t have the courage to look at me, yet you killed my mother." She spoke of all the life milestones her mother would now miss, such as her college graduation and wedding. The judge accepted the plea deal, noting it spared the family the anguish of a trial. The case was closed with Thurman’s sentencing in November 2023.
