Michael Wade Tucker
PRESS RELEASE FROM 24TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
A Fayette County man will serve the rest of his life in prison for the murder of Laci Whitson in 2024, 24th Judicial Circuit District Attorney Andy Hamlin announced Friday.
Michael Wade Tucker, 37, pleaded guilty to murder at a hearing in Fayette County Circuit Court Friday morning. Following the plea, Judge Sam Junkin ordered him to serve life in prison, the maximum possible sentence for murder.
“This was a horrific and senseless crime, and while nothing can ease the pain Laci’s loved ones continue to carry, I hope this plea brings them a measure of justice and peace,” Hamlin said. “I want to thank her family for their strength and patience as we’ve worked through this investigation and the court process. We continue to pray for them.”
Family members reported Laci Cheyenne Whitson missing on June 29, 2024. The investigation revealed that Tucker had picked her up from a location in Florence during the early morning hours of June 26 and taken her to his home on County Road 52 in northeast Fayette County.
On June 30, 2024, investigators searched Tucker’s residence and surrounding property. They determined that Whitson had been shot inside the home. Her remains were found concealed in a boat on the property, and her clothing and personal belongings were located inside the house.
Hamlin thanked the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office, Alabama State Bureau of Investigation, the District Attorney’s Office Criminal Investigations Division, Chief Assistant District Attorney Jack Nolen and others who assisted with the investigation.
“We’re incredibly grateful to the witnesses who came forward and the law enforcement agencies that worked this case so thoroughly,” he said. “Because of their efforts, we were able to build a solid case that the defendant had no choice but to plead guilty.”
