A member of a violent Liberty City gang who was sent to death row for the murders of two people will no longer face the death chamber.
Decades after his indictment, prosecutors are giving up their attempt to have him resentenced to death after changes in Florida’s death penalty law over the years gave Corey Smith a second chance.
This comes amid questionable actions by the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office that were uncovered by his defense team.
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Smith was convicted of two murders in 2005 and received lesser penalties for the deaths of four others.
The state attorney's office said several witnesses along with testifying police officers have died since the indictment was filed 24 years ago.
Not to mention, some of the witnesses have become uncooperative.
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“While the prior testimony of deceased and recanting witnesses can be read to the jury, cold transcripts are not as impactful as the words of a live witness… mitigating evidence will highlight aspects of [Smith’s] background, upbringing, and mental state, suggesting that a lesser sentence of life imprisonment is appropriate… compelled to resentence because of court decisions, with the passage of time, and taking all these factors into consideration, we do not feel that we have a sufficiently compelling case for a death penalty presentation to jurors," the state attorney's office said in a statement.
The case of Corey Smith has been shrouded with controversy. The senior prosecutor of the case – Michael Von Zamft – resigned in March after a damning jailhouse phone call to a convicted killer who was connected to the gang. A judge issued a rare order that removed prosecutors from the case after misconduct was found including manipulating witnesses and improperly withholding relevant records from the defense.
The latest move comes after the state released to the defense text messages between the state attorney and an original prosecutor on the case who is now an appeals court judge.
The defense claims they show more unethical behavior.
Now that death is off the table, the defense will continue trying to have a judge throw out all of Smith’s convictions from 2005.
