DANBURY CT May 26 2013 The death earlier this week of Scott Byron Smith, a former New Milford police officer who made national headlines in January 1999 when he was charged with murder after shooting and killing a suspect following a police chase a month earlier, has been ruled a suicide.
A spokesperson for the chief medical officer’s office said Friday, May 24, that suicide was the manner of death and carbon monoxide poisoning the cause of death of Smith, 41, a resident of 1 Acre Drive.
He was found dead in his home Tuesday morning, May 21. Police had been notified by friends of Smith’s, stating that they could not make contact with him, according to Lt. Thomas Michael of the Danbury Police Department (DPD). When police responded, around 9:26 a.m., members of the Danbury Fire Department forced entry into Smith’s residence, according to police. Paramedics found Smith in his bed and pronounced him dead, according to the details the DPD spokesman provided.
According to Smith’s obituary notice on Legacy.com, final arrangements are now being made. Calling hours will be held Tuesday, May 28, at Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main St., Newtown, from 5 to 7 p.m., when a memorial service will be held.
Smith, who was born in Danbury, was the son of Bonnie (Mayberry) Smith of Southbury and the late Kenneth B. Smith Jr. and the father of Montannah Smith of Austin, Texas. He grew up in Newtown and graduated from Newtown High School in the Class of 1990. He went on to graduate from Quinnipiac University in 1994 and from the Connecticut Police Academy in 1996.
On Dec. 29, 1998, then Officer Smith caught Franklyn Reid, 27, of New Milford after a foot chase along Route 202 in New Milford and shot him in the back after apprehending him while attempting to place him into custody. Police had a warrant for Reid’s arrest on a violation of probation charge.
The officer claimed he shot Reid in self-defense, stating he did not respond when ordered to show his hands. Reid had a criminal record, including a stabbing conviction, and the officer stated he feared he had a weapon. Reid was not armed, but a folding knife was found in the front pocket of his jacket, a distance away from where he fell. Witnesses stated they saw the suspect standing, facing the officer with his arms raised, sitting, and then lying on his stomach with the officer holding his hands behind him and the officer’s foot on his back.
In January 1999, the officer was charged with murder. Widespread attention was drawn to the case because Smith was the first officer to be charged with murder in the state; there were claims of racial conflict, which later proved unsubstantiated, because he was white and the suspect was black; and concerns arose as to what was considered reasonable use of force in apprehending a suspect.
Smith was convicted of manslaughter in Litchfield Superior Court trial and received a six-year term of imprisonment. A retrial was scheduled after his conviction was successfully appealed, with the Appellate Court finding that during Smith’s trial the judge had not allowed testimony from expert witnesses about officer training and the use of deadly force and had failed in instructing the jury properly. Before being retried, the officer reportedly agreed to a plea of criminally negligent homicide and avoided imprisonment. No longer allowed to serve in law enforcement, he later sought employment as a firefighter but was not hired locally.
To leave online condolences, visit www.honanfh.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Montannah Kenney-Smith Fund, care of Newtown Savings Bank, 685 Main St. South, Southbury, CT 06488 and would be appreciated.
Source-the register citizen
A spokesperson for the chief medical officer’s office said Friday, May 24, that suicide was the manner of death and carbon monoxide poisoning the cause of death of Smith, 41, a resident of 1 Acre Drive.
He was found dead in his home Tuesday morning, May 21. Police had been notified by friends of Smith’s, stating that they could not make contact with him, according to Lt. Thomas Michael of the Danbury Police Department (DPD). When police responded, around 9:26 a.m., members of the Danbury Fire Department forced entry into Smith’s residence, according to police. Paramedics found Smith in his bed and pronounced him dead, according to the details the DPD spokesman provided.
According to Smith’s obituary notice on Legacy.com, final arrangements are now being made. Calling hours will be held Tuesday, May 28, at Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main St., Newtown, from 5 to 7 p.m., when a memorial service will be held.
Smith, who was born in Danbury, was the son of Bonnie (Mayberry) Smith of Southbury and the late Kenneth B. Smith Jr. and the father of Montannah Smith of Austin, Texas. He grew up in Newtown and graduated from Newtown High School in the Class of 1990. He went on to graduate from Quinnipiac University in 1994 and from the Connecticut Police Academy in 1996.
On Dec. 29, 1998, then Officer Smith caught Franklyn Reid, 27, of New Milford after a foot chase along Route 202 in New Milford and shot him in the back after apprehending him while attempting to place him into custody. Police had a warrant for Reid’s arrest on a violation of probation charge.
The officer claimed he shot Reid in self-defense, stating he did not respond when ordered to show his hands. Reid had a criminal record, including a stabbing conviction, and the officer stated he feared he had a weapon. Reid was not armed, but a folding knife was found in the front pocket of his jacket, a distance away from where he fell. Witnesses stated they saw the suspect standing, facing the officer with his arms raised, sitting, and then lying on his stomach with the officer holding his hands behind him and the officer’s foot on his back.
In January 1999, the officer was charged with murder. Widespread attention was drawn to the case because Smith was the first officer to be charged with murder in the state; there were claims of racial conflict, which later proved unsubstantiated, because he was white and the suspect was black; and concerns arose as to what was considered reasonable use of force in apprehending a suspect.
Smith was convicted of manslaughter in Litchfield Superior Court trial and received a six-year term of imprisonment. A retrial was scheduled after his conviction was successfully appealed, with the Appellate Court finding that during Smith’s trial the judge had not allowed testimony from expert witnesses about officer training and the use of deadly force and had failed in instructing the jury properly. Before being retried, the officer reportedly agreed to a plea of criminally negligent homicide and avoided imprisonment. No longer allowed to serve in law enforcement, he later sought employment as a firefighter but was not hired locally.
To leave online condolences, visit www.honanfh.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Montannah Kenney-Smith Fund, care of Newtown Savings Bank, 685 Main St. South, Southbury, CT 06488 and would be appreciated.
Source-the register citizen