Crime

Father and Daughter Await Extradition in Murder of Jacquelyn Smith

THE AFRO — The alleged murder of a woman known as a “good samaritan,” by a panhandler shocked many in Baltimore.

Published

6 years ago

March 6, 2019

By Michelle Richardson

The alleged murder of a woman known as a “good samaritan,” by a panhandler shocked many in Baltimore, a city sometimes numb to violence. This week, in a gruesome real-life plot twist that woman’s husband and stepdaughter have been charged in her murder.

Originally, Keith Smith, 52, of Aberdeen and Valeria Smith, 28, of Baltimore told the Baltimore Police Department (BPD), his wife Jacquelyn Anne Smith, 54, was stabbed by a panhandler after she rolled down her window in a blighted East Baltimore neighborhood in December to give money to a man and woman who claimed they were trying to feed their baby.

For several weeks, waves of outrage rippled from Baltimore across the nation; even media titan Oprah Winfrey weighed in on the killing in December when she tweeted, “This story struck my heart. I’ve done this 1k times. But will think twice before ever doing again. To J.S. family I hope her death gets people “woke to change!”” wrote Winfrey.

In the aftermath of his wife’s alleged murder, Keith Smith and his daughter Valeria made emotional public pleas for information that would lead to the capture of the killer of their loved one; they made the round on local news stations, flyers were made and distributed throughout neighborhoods.

But, on March 3 BPD announced they charged Smith and his daughter with the murder of Jacquelyn Smith.

The father and daughter duo were caught by Texas State Troopers trying to escape the U.S. near the U.S.-Mexico border and were arrested in Combes, Texas. They had allegedly told family members they were moving to Florida.

Both are being held without bail in Texas and are expected to be extradited to Baltimore before March 20, according to charging documents.

“The information and evidence points it wasn’t a panhandler…People are taking advantage of Baltimore. We want to make sure the truth comes out and justice is done,” said Michael Harrison, BPD acting commissioner, during a press conference on March 4, with Mayor Catherine Pugh and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby.

“This is an example where collaborative efforts of the Baltimore Police Department and my office were able to get to the truth of the matter,” Mosby said.

“I’m disappointed that the two alleged suspects attempted to take advantage of negative perceptions of our city…We look forward to fighting for justice on behalf of Jacquelyn Smith and her family in a court of law.”

Pugh alluded to the deplorable ruse allegedly perpetrated by the accused murderers.

“Like everyone in our city, state, and across this nation, we mourned the senseless killing of Jacquelyn Smith. To now learn that family members staged this brutal killing is beyond belief and represents a double tragedy,” Pugh said. “They were responsible for taking Jacquelyn’s life with unconscionable cruelty and contrived to do so in our city under the guise of random violence, exploiting the legitimate fears of our residents. I commend our homicide detectives for their expert and tireless work in bringing those truly responsible to justice in this very troubling and sad case,” Pugh added.

Local television station, FOX 45 talked to the mother of Jacquelyn Smith, who said she had her doubts about how her daughter died from the beginning.

“She was just a good person. She liked everybody. She believed in God a lot. It was all phony. I knew it was not real. I suspected that he had something to do with it,” said Trisvan, who added she confronted her now estranged son-in-law at her daughter’s funeral.

“I gave you a beautiful daughter and you let her die like that, I know she didn’t deserve to die the way she died,” she said.

Smith and his daughter are both charged with nine counts of first-degree murder. Police have not established a motive in Jacquelyn Smith’s alleged murder.

This article originally appeared in The Afro.

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Oakland Post: Week of October 30 – November 5, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of October 30 – November 5, 2024

Published

21 hours ago

November 1, 2024

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price Announces $7.5 Million Settlement Agreement with Walmart

The settlement resolves allegations that Walmart unlawfully disposed of hazardous waste and medical waste from its facilities statewide to municipal landfills. Walmart agreed to pay $4,297,040 in civil penalties and $3,202,960 in costs, to be split among the prosecuting agencies, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, and some local environmental protection agencies. There are nine Walmart stores in Alameda County.

Published

5 days ago

October 28, 2024

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Oakland Post Staff

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, the California Attorney General’s Office, and eleven other prosecutors’ offices secured a $7.5 million settlement with Walmart on behalf of the People of the State of California.

“Large corporations must be held accountable when they do not follow the law and put the health and safety of Alameda County residents at risk,” said Price. “I commend my office’s Consumer Justice Bureau’s active involvement in this investigation, which helped bring this settlement forward and holds Walmart to account.”

The settlement is the result of over 70 covert waste inspections conducted by the district attorneys’ offices statewide from 2015 through 2021, including many assisted by Alameda County District Attorney’s Office environmental protection investigators. During those inspections, the offices inspected the waste that Walmart sent from its stores to local landfills and found hundreds of containers of toxic aerosols and liquid wastes (including spray paints, rust removers, bleach, and pesticides), as well as medical waste (such as over-the-counter drugs).

Improperly disposed of private consumer information was also found.

The People filed a civil law enforcement complaint against Walmart in 2021, wherein those unlawful disposals were alleged to violate the Hazardous Waste Control Law, Medical Waste Management Act, and Unfair Competition Law.

The civil action and stipulated judgment were filed in Alameda County Superior Court. The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office has been involved in the investigation and civil case preparation since 2015.

The settlement also imposes injunctive terms, which require Walmart to maintain an independent, third-party auditor to conduct three annual rounds of waste audits at its facilities throughout California during the next four years. Walmart’s auditor must use specific requirements in the settlement to ensure that hazardous waste is properly classified, handled, disposed of, and transported according to California law.

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Activism

Black Tulip Calls for Action and a Cultural Shift in Oakland for Black Women’s Safety

Anyka Howard, founder of the Betti Ono Foundation and visionary of Black Tulip, expressed the core value of the movement and urgent need for change. “We’re not going to tolerate Oakland being a hotbed for dysfunction and violence, and perpetuating harms against Black women and girls,” Howard said. “We deserve better, we are worthy, our lives matter, and it’s time for us to boldly, and collectively proclaim that and expect the appropriate response.”

Published

5 days ago

October 28, 2024

Oakland Post

Jada Imani and another Black Tulip attendee building an altar at the Lake Merritt Amphitheater in honor of artist Zoe Reidy Watts, 25, who was killed in Oakland in March. Courtesy photo.

By Kristal Raheem
Special to The Post

Last week, Oakland City Council voted to adopt a resolution supporting the federal Protect Black Women and Girls Act, (H.R. 7354). The federal law would establish an interagency task force to examine the experiences of Black women in U.S. society, from education to health care to jobs to housing.

A 2020 study by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation reported that 40% of humans being trafficked in the U.S. are Black women. In 2022, the FBI reported 97,000 Black women were missing. That same year in Oakland, 400 Black women were reported missing.

The Council vote on Oct. 15 was just the latest reflection of a blossoming movement in Oakland demanding greater protection for Black women and girls.

From Oct. 3-5, the Betti Ono Foundation, in partnership with the Black Arts Movement Business District and Community Development Corporation (BAMB CDC), hosted their inaugural Black Tulip Cultural Week of Action.

The Black Tulip event series included a write-in at the BAMB CDC, an Oakland’s First Friday partnership, and a Day of Action at Lake Merritt.

Howard said everyone must support Black Tulip’s mission, regardless of race and other social identities. She specifically called for men to show up more as allies.

West Oakland native and founder of Black Terminus AR, Damien McDuffie, said the Town’s “pimp culture” has warped how Black women are treated. “Oakland has a complex history around sexual assault and pimp culture, so I think we have a warped sense of what safety might look like, especially for women and girls,” Damien saud. “I think a real impact on how women are treated here in Oakland or in the Bay Area will come from a culture shift.”

The Black Tulip Day of Action took place on Saturday, Oct. 5. Healers, poets, and musicians joined forces to amplify joy, remembrance, and hope.

Oakland educator and healer Venus Morris co-hosted the event alongside honorary guest speaker and singer Dawn Richard.

Richard is the artist relations director with the Hip Hop Caucus, an organization that helps artists use their platform to advocate for important issues. She is also one of 120 people being represented in a lawsuit against Sean “Diddy” Combs for alleged sexual assault and abuse.

Despite the media frenzy regarding the legal case, Richard showed up in Oakland to stand in solidarity for the mission of Black Tulip. “I think our narrative has been stolen from us,” Richard said. “We’ve lost the narrative of what we represent in this culture and in this society. We are more and I think this event exemplifies that.”

Participants gathered to honor the lives of Black women who lost their lives to violence while also celebrating one another as the journey for justice continues.

“We are the mothers, the womb of this earth. There is no America, no globalization, no capitalism, without us,” Howard told Oakland Voices. “People are taught to see us in a particular way that does not honor who we are. Black Tulip is a reclamation of our sacredness. It’s an affirmation, a calling, a demand.”

This story was initially published by Oakland Voices (http://oaklandvoices.us). The author previously worked as a communications and public relations manager for Councilmember Treva Reid.