Fifty years after the unsolved murder of author Donald Goines and his common-law wife in their Highland Park apartment, a film production company is shooting a documentary and launching a new investigation in hopes of uncovering what happened.
The film company, Detroit Son, will explore the life and legacy of Goines, a prolific writer widely credited with shaping the genre of urban fiction. To help reexamine the cold case, Detroit Son has hired locally renowned private investigator and former TV journalist Bill Proctor.
“There has been a lot of speculation about the two individuals who did the shooting and why the shooting took place,” Proctor said. “But this is a cold case that’s never been solved, and now it’s time to get some answers.”
Goines and Sailor were found fatally shot inside their apartment on Oct. 21, 1974. Both had been struck multiple times in the head and chest. Police received an anonymous tip about the shooting and found Goines in the living room and Sailor in the kitchen. Initial reports indicated there were two male suspects, but no arrests were ever made.
“It’s unfortunate that, 50 years later, we still don’t have the people who did this in jail,” said Donna Sailor, Goines’s daughter who was 2 years old at the time of the shooting. “Hopefully this reward and investigation will help our family not only get answers, but justice. So if you have information, please come forward.”
The documentary aims to spotlight Goines’s influence and complex legacy. Filming will take place in Detroit and Highland Park, and the documentary is expected to be released in spring 2026.
In addition to the renewed investigation and documentary, Detroit Son is offering a $5,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of the killers.
Born in Detroit in 1936, Goines was raised in a middle-class Catholic household and lied about his age to join the Air Force at 15. While serving in the Korean War, he developed a heroin addiction that followed him after his honorable discharge.
To support his addiction, Goines turned to crime, including pimping, robbery, and bootlegging, and he spent time in both state and federal prison. While incarcerated, he began writing fiction inspired by the people and environments around him. After reading Pimp by Iceberg Slim, Goines shifted from writing westerns to gritty street novels, publishing 16 books between 1971 and 1975.
His works — including Dopefiend, Daddy Cool, and the Kenyatta series — became cult classics, especially among incarcerated readers and marginalized communities.
His influence has stretched far beyond literature, with rappers like 2Pac, Nas Jadakiss, and Ludacris referencing his work in their lyrics. Robert “Tape” Bailey, an executive producer on the documentary, said Goines’s book gave him hope while serving time in prison.
“As someone who grew up on the east side of Detroit, who spent time in prison, who read Goines’s books while I was locked up — these were some of the first books I read in my life,” Bailey said. “These books helped me to know that there was something better for me.”
Executive producer Craig Gore said Goines’s legacy is still underappreciated and his impact has gone largely unnoticed.
“There are many individuals who took a different path after reading a Goines book,” he said.
The documentary is expected to be produced on a $500,000 budget.
Anyone with tips about the 50-year-old murder is urged to call 586-873-1371.
