Do not keep tapes of your ambush murders!

2016-M-314         State of Minnesota, Respondent (A14-0941), Appellant (A15-0300), vs. Byron David Smith, Appellant. 

THE CRIME:  Smith had been victimized by burglars several times in the week before these murders.  Smith and one neighbor believed that an adolescent second neighbor was a spotter for the burglars.  The final prior burglary occurred the day before the two killings.  On Thanksgiving Day on November 22, 2012, Smith was waiting in his basement for a return of burglars.

To fool the spotter, Smith had driven away from his home and parked some distance away.  He returned through the woods and came in through his back door so the spotter would not see him return.  Smith turned on an audio recorder, activated feeds from four video cameras outside the corners of his home, and waited with his rifle and handgun.

Around noon, the audio recording revealed that Nicholas Brady broke a bedroom window and entered the home.  Two minutes later, Brady came down the stairs.  In three seconds, Smith shot Brady a second and third time.  Smith dragged Brady’s body into a side room and covered it with a tarp.

About 10 minutes after Brady entered and about 8 minutes after the shooting, Haile Kifer entered Smith’s house. Kifer quietly called out, “Nick.” Hearing no response, she started down the basement stairs. She again said, “Nick.” Just as he had with Brady, Smith fired when he saw Kifer’s hips, but before he saw her hands. Smith later told the police that his first shot was at “what [he] would consider point blank range.”

Kifer tumbled down the steps. Smith tried to shoot her again, but his rifle jammed. Smith commented, “Oh, sorry about that.” Kifer exclaimed, “Oh my God!” Smith pulled out his revolver and shot her. Amidst Kifer’s screams, Smith shot her a third time and a fourth time.  Smith said, “You’re dying!” Kifer screamed. Smith shot her a fifth time. Calling her “bitch,” Smith dragged Kifer into the workroom and placed her on the tarp on top of Brady’s body. But Kifer was not yet dead, so Smith shot her a sixth and final time.

The audio record through the rest of the day had many damaging statements by Smith.  Smith contacted the police and surrendered the next morning.

TRIAL AND APPEAL:  Following a jury trial in 2013, the district court sentenced Smith to two life sentences without the possibility of release for two counts of first-degree premeditated murder.

MAJORITY:  Here, the Supreme Court affirmed Smith’s conviction and denied his four claims on appeal.

1.      The district court did not err in denying the defendant’s motion to dismiss the indictment based on five separate, individually alleged errors.

2.      The cumulative effect of the five alleged errors in the indictment process did not deprive the defendant of a fair grand-jury proceeding.

3.      The nonpublic proceeding to discuss the district court’s ruling on a pretrial evidentiary issue did not violate the defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to a public trial.

4.      The district court did not violate the defendant’s constitutional right to present a complete defense by excluding four pieces of evidence.

The Supreme Court also rejected a consolidated appeal by the state which challenged the limits on the restitution order the trial court imposed o Smith.

CONCUR:  Justice Stras concurred with the rest of the Majority opinion, but he dissented on one point.  While the United States Supreme Court has allowed trial courts to protect the identities of endangered witnesses from the public, Justice Stras complained when the trial judge cleared the courtroom of an audience during a pre-trial evidentiary hearing to protect the identities of some witnesses.

Lillehaug (Gildea, Anderson, and Dietzen)

CONCUR:  Stras.

Took No Part:  Hudson.

 [CRIME] [MURDER] [PREMEDITATED]

Date: March 09, 2016