WAYNE COUNTY, Mich. – The mother of a 9-year-old boy who was smothered to death, bound, and buried in a shallow grave behind a house in Detroit was arraigned on murder charges.
Brandee Katrice Pierce, 41, is facing multiple charges in the death of her son, 9-year-old Zemar King. She is accused of killing him on Oct. 24, 2024, and then leaving the state with her 3-year-old son.
Pierce is facing the following charges:
- First-degree murder
- Felony murder
- First-degree child abuse
- Tampering with evidence
- Concealing the death of an individual
On Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, Pierce was arraigned via Zoom. She did not speak during the hearing and a not guilty plea was entered on her behalf.
Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Tina Ripley requested that Pierce be remanded to jail in this case.
Pierce’s attorney asked the court to consider house arrest with a tether. Because Pierce is homeless and has no income, the attorney asked that she be confined to a homeless shelter.
The judge determined that Pierce is a “danger to the community” and a “flight risk.” Pierce was remanded to jail and not given bond.
Timeline: Mother accused of killing 9-year-old son, leaving Michigan
Ripley said that in April 2024, Pierce and her two children went to a hospital where Zemar told Child Protective Services that his mother chokes him and wants to kill him.
“The facts in this case are nothing short of egregious, Zemar King was a 9-year-old child, who was treated like he was a piece of garbage. He deserved better and we believe that the evidence will show that back in April of 2024, the defendant and her two children went to a hospital for help, CPS got involved, Zemar told CPS that his mother chokes him and wants to kill him,” Ripley said.
Ripley said that in October 2024, Pierce and her two children were living at a home on Woodingham Drive in Detroit when Pierce ordered a shovel and a wagon from Walmart and dug a hole in the backyard behind the garage. Pierce is accused of killing Zemar later that month.
“Later in October, I believe October 24, Zemar wakes up early, as would be usual for him. We believe that the evidence will show that the defendant smothered and suffocated Zemar and that the defendant heard his last gasping breath and decided to walk away,” Ripley said. “That when the defendant came back to Zemar he was blue and instead of helping him she decided to bind his arms and legs, put him in a wagon, and take him out to the hole that she had in the back yard and bury him.”
Prosecutors said that on Nov. 6, 2024, Pierce left the rental home and took her 3-year-old child out of the state. Ripley said they traveled to Illinois, Wisconsin, and then to Georgia. Pierce was arrested twice in Georgia for crimes involving her other child and drugs.
On Dec. 20, 2024, the Brookhaven Police Department in Atlanta, Georgia, investigated Pierce on an unrelated matter regarding the 3-year-old boy and contacted the Detroit Police Department. The 3-year-old boy was placed in foster care.
Zemar’s body was discovered by a landlord on Jan. 6, 2025, in a shallow grave in the backyard of the home on Woodingham Drive. The landlord was working to prepare the property for a new tenant when he found Zemar’s body and called police.
Pierce was arrested in Georgia in connection with the murder on Jan. 10, 2025.
Pierce was arraigned at 11 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025. Watch the full arraignment in the video player below:
Next court appearances
Pierce is scheduled to appear via Zoom for a probable cause conference at 8:30 a.m. on March 7, 2025.
A preliminary examination is scheduled for 1:45 p.m. on March 13, 2025, before Judge Shawn Jacque. That hearing will be conducted in-person.
