FLINT – Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said a jury has convicted Cedric Thomas Hendrickson, 26, of Burton, on all twenty counts including the murder of his ex-girlfriend’s sister.
According to testimony at trial, police were dispatched to the Harvard Apartments building in the city of Mt. Morris just before 7 p.m. on January 11, 2023, after a call to 9-1-1 reported that a person had just been shot.
When police arrived at the scene, they found the caller kneeling next to her sister who was lying unresponsive on the floor. The victim was identified as Mallory Dunnivant, 35, and she was later pronounced dead from gunshot wounds.
According to trial testimony, Hendrickson and Dunnivant’s sister, who had a child in common with Hendrickson, had just broken up the week prior to the shooting and the two continued to argue by phone and texts over the course of the week concerning their breakup and other matters. The evening of the shooting, Hendrickson and his new girlfriend drove around looking for his ex-girlfriend and they went to Dunnivant’s
apartment building where they suspected they might find her.
At the apartment building, Hendrickson was in the parking lot and got into a shouting match with his ex-girlfriend who was at the window of Mallory’s third floor apartment along with Mallory. Five young children were also present inside the apartment.
After a period of time, Hendrickson got into his new girlfriend’s car and as they began to pull away, Hendrickson fired 11 shots at the apartment window and Mallory was struck and killed.
“This was an absolutely tragic and senseless incident that took the life of a young mother, a beloved sister and daughter, and by all counts a person loved by many in the Mt. Morris community through her work as a paraprofessional at a nearby elementary school,” said Prosecutor Leyton.
He continued: “I want to especially commend the City of Mt. Morris Police Department for their immediate response and follow-up investigation into this matter and the solid case they put together that allowed us to see justice through for Mallory, her family and friends, and our community.
Leyton noted numerous police agencies also assisted in the investigation including the Genesee Township
Police, Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, and the Michigan State Police.
“Any case that we take to trial depends on the hard work of an entire team of professionals in our office but, I want to highlight the work of Assistant Prosecutor Steven Ellis, who took the case to trial with the support of Assistant Prosecutor Sam Fleet, along with our secretaries, victim advocates and many others,” stated Leyton.
The jury convicted Hendrickson of first-degree premeditated murder, five counts of assault with intent to murder, thirteen related firearm charges, and one count of domestic violence. He faces life in prison without the possibility of parole when he is sentenced on January 27, 2025.
