Michael McGay Reeves

Michael McGay Reeves (born July 22, 1962) is an American murderer and suspected serial killer who was convicted of murdering a woman in North Carolina in 1989. Sentenced to death for this crime, he was additionally suspected of two similar murders committed in Virginia between February and August 1989, but was never brought to trial for either of them.

Early life Little is known about Reeves' upbringing. Born on July 22, 1962, in Marion, Virginia, he enlisted in the Marine Corps in the mid-1980s and was transferred to serve in Craven County, North Carolina. In 1986, he held a female Marine at knifepoint and raped her, for which he was later arrested, convicted and subsequently dishonorably discharged from the service.

In March 1988, he was released from prison and moved back to Marion, where he found himself a girlfriend named Lori Woods. In order to support himself, Reeves started worked at a stable in Craven County, North Carolina, where he remained from August 1988 until March 1989.

Murders On February 6, 1989, Reeves broke into the home of 27-year-old Susan Thomas Toler, who lived at 1855 Hill Neck Road in Ernul, a small city located within Craven County. When he came across her, he slashed her throat with a knife, put a pillow over her face and shot her in the head with a .25 caliber pistol. Toler was discovered later that day and rushed to the Craven Regional Medical Center, but was pronounced dead on arrival.

Approximately two months later, on April 16, a man picking aluminum cans south of Marion found the body of 47-year-old Barbara Jean Hagy near a mountain road. Hagy had gone missing the previous day after leaving her home to attend a party at the Wagon Wheel, a dance hall located at the volunteer fire department. At the time her body was discovered, most of her clothing was missing. Initially, it was suspected that her killing would be related to a triple murder in nearby Tazewell County, but this lead was later abandoned.

On July 6, the body of 47-year-old Betty Ann Shumate was found on a service road off I-81, close to her workplace at the Adwolfe Food Center. She was stabbed several times in the kidney. Approximately a month later, local police arrested her estranged husband Robert and charged with him the murder, holding him on $200,000 bail. The basis for the arrest was that since Shumate was behind on child support payments, he had a reason to harm his wife. This, in addition to a witness description provided by a local which vaguely resembled Robert, led police to initially believe he was responsible.

Attempted suicide, rapes, and arrest Attempted suicide Approximately 45 minutes after Betty Shumate's last recorded sale at the market, Reeves returned to his home and shot himself through the left shoulder in what appeared to be a suicide attempt.

Four days later, Reeves went to a Rodeway Inn in Bristol, Tennessee. Once he entered, he asked a female employee for some towels - once she turned around to get them, he put his hand over her mouth and threatened her with a knife.

Upon closely inspecting his background, local authorities started to realize that he might be connected to the murders in Marion, as well as the Toler murder in North Carolina. Because of this, focus was shifted onto him as the prime suspect, leading to the subsequent dropping of all charges against Robert Shumate.

Investigation and trials During their subsequent investigations into Reeves, authorities discovered numerous pieces of circumstantial evidence that indicated he might be responsible for the crimes. While still awaiting the results of the evaluation, he was charged with the murder of Toler after North Carolina authorities found his pistol and identified it as the murder weapon. When the trial began, the victim herself was called in to testify against Reeves, who himself refused to participate. In the end, Reeves was found guilty on two counts of sexual assault, one count of abduction with intent to sexually assault, robbery and attempted murder. Throughout the proceedings, it was noted that Reeves stared at the victim while she was giving her testimony.

As a potential sentence, the jury recommended two life terms plus an additional 100 years imprisonment.

North Carolina murder trial After the rape trial, Reeves was charged with the murder of Susan Toler, with testimony from the unnamed USFS worker being used to link his truck to the crime scene. He pleaded guilty to the crime, and was later sentenced to death for it, with the prosecutor describing the murder as a "worst-case scenario" in which an innocent woman was brutally killed in the presence of her young child.

Current status Later on in 1993, Reeves was charged with the murder of Hagy, but was never brought to trial for it. This was later revealed to be the work of a secret deal between Governors James G. Martin and Douglas Wilder, who concluded that if Reeves was indeed sentenced to death in North Carolina, there would be no need to transfer him over to stand trial for the Virginia crimes.

Reeves was originally scheduled to be executed in 1995, but he received a stay of execution to pursue further appeals. As of January 2025, he remains on the state death row awaiting execution due to the unofficial moratorium on executions in the state.