Jury convicts man of 2021 murder in Eastpointe

EASTPOINTE — Following a seven-day jury trial, a Detroit man was found guilty of first-degree murder in the 2021 killing of an Eastpointe man.

Danny Darnell White, now 33, went to the victim’s home on Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2021, to settle a drug debt, according to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office. Armed with a handgun, White reportedly shot the victim — Titus Houston, 38 — eight times, in the basement of his Eastpointe home.

Houston was found by his ex-girlfriend, who arrived at the home near Stephens Road and Interstate 94 with his children and a cake to celebrate his birthday. They discovered the body at about 1:20 p.m. Sept. 29, 2021.

White was arrested Sept. 30 of that year at a home in Detroit. He was charged with first-degree murder, a life felony; two counts of felony firearm, a two-year felony; and felon in possession of a firearm, a five-year felony. At the time, Eastpointe Public Safety Director George Rouhib said that White knew Houston.

“Robbery was not the motive,” Rouhib said at the time of the crime. “There was some type of altercation that took place in the basement area.”

White’s trial began Feb. 14. After seven days of testimony, the jury took 90 minutes to reach a guilty verdict, according to a press release from the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office.

“Our office has been charging gun crimes all day every day,” Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido said in the press release. “Thank you to the Eastpointe Police Department for their swift investigation in this case.”

White’s attorney, Stephanie Carson, declined to comment. However, she said White plans to appeal the verdict.

White is currently scheduled for sentencing at 9 a.m. April 6 in front of 16th Circuit Court Judge Matthew Sabaugh. White faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.