Springfield man convicted of manslaughter for shooting girlfriend in the head

A Springfield man who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder this summer — then withdrew his plea four months later when state gun laws changed — was found guilty of a lesser charge on Thursday.

The difference is significant. On the murder charge, Darrell L. Smith faced 30 years in prison. The maximum sentence for the manslaughter charge is 7.

Smith, 29, was found guilty of second-degree involuntary manslaughter for shooting his girlfriend, Kimberly Walker, in the head on Dec. 30, 2012. He was also found guilty of armed criminal action, which could bring additional prison time.

Smith pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in July but withdrew his plea in October, citing the recently approved Amendment 5, which did away with some gun laws — including a provision that prohibited any felons from possessing a firearm.

Smith was moved to tears by the jury's decision on Thursday. And Smith's mother, Tammy Fields, said she felt like justice was served.

"It was an accident," Fields said. "God showed mercy."

Walker's parents, who were visibly upset, declined to comment.

In closing arguments, Smith's attorney Charlton Chastain said the shooting was an accident and Smith's suspicious behavior following the incident — like taking Walker to a neighbor's house and then returning to the scene of the crime and moving the gun — was the result of stupidity.

"Stupid? It should probably be tattooed across his forehead," Chastain said of Smith. "But if stupidity was a crime, jails would be busting at the seams."

Chastain acknowledged that Smith shot Walker, but he argued that the crime committed was involuntary manslaughter and not murder. The jury agreed.

Jury members had a choice between charges of second-degree murder, first-degree involuntary manslaughter and second-degree involuntary manslaughter, and found Smith guilty of the least serious charge after three hours of deliberation.

Prosecutors said second-degree murder has a sentencing range of 10 to 30 years in prison. Second-degree involuntary manslaughter, however, has a maximum sentence of 7 years in prison for a prior and persistent offender like Smith. Armed criminal action has a minimum sentence of 3 years in prison and no maximum sentence.

Prosecuting attorney Philip Fuhrman pointed to a history of domestic violence, changes in Smith's story and the path of the bullet as evidence for why the shooting was no accident.

"When you consider all of the physical evidence and how many times the defendant changed his story, he is not telling the truth," Fuhrman said. "He is not telling the truth because he killed Kim intentionally."

Walker died in the hospital the day after she was shot.

Court documents say Smith originally told a neighbor and police that Walker had accidentally shot herself. He later said he was holding the gun when it accidentally went off and shot her in the head.

Chastain said Smith changed his story after the shooting because he was in shock.

Medical personnel told police the bullet entered the left side of Walker's forehead and traveled in a downward angle toward her right ear and did not exit. Police believe the bullet's path does not match Smith's description of the wound, according to the documents.

During the trial, the defense called an expert witness who testified that Smith's final account of the events was physically possible. Smith's version was that Walker was bent over rolling a blunt — a synthetic marijuana cigarette rolled with cigar paper — before she turned toward him just as the gun went off.

Prosecutors said a witness saw Smith knock Walker to the ground in a previous incident and Walker's co-worker had once offered Walker a place to stay out of concern for her safety.

Prosecutors said Walker's car was packed with her belongings at the time of the shooting and she was planning to leave Smith. Chastain, however, argued it was just as possible Walker was moving in.

Prosecutor Nathan Chapman said he was disappointed with the jury's decision.

"Obviously we felt like it was a murder and we presented the evidence as best we could," Chapman said. "We respect the jury's decision and we thank them for their service."

Chastain said in his closing arguments that Walker was a loving daughter, sister and mother, but convicting Smith of murder would not be justice.

"When someone who is loved so much dies suddenly, we want it to have meaning," Chastain said. "Her death was senseless."

Amendment 5, which was approved by Missouri voters in August, allows nonviolent felons to possess guns. Before Amendment 5, Smith could have been found guilty of murder for committing a felony that resulted in a death — in this case the felony would have been felon in possession of a firearm since Smith has past felony convictions for stealing.

A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for March 27.