Elbert Smith, second from right, and family.
by Dick Hall-Sizemore
The Parole Board just released a convicted murderer. Yes, this Parole Board. The one that Glenn Youngkin appointed to crack down on the release of all those violent criminals. And not a peep out of Kerry Dougherty or Hans Bader, who ordinarily go on a rant when a convicted murderer is released on parole.
The circumstances surrounding this offender, Elbert Smith, certainly justified his release on parole. He did not fire the fatal shots that resulted in a man’s death. The man who did fire the shots accepted a plea deal — voluntary manslaughter and a sentence of five years. Smith, acting on the advice of his court-appointed attorney, refused the deal. A jury convicted him of second- degree murder and imposed a sentence of 44 years. Convicted in 1996, he had served 27 years in prison. During that time, he had had only one serious infraction. During the last ten years, his record had been clean. The warden in the prison in which he was being held did not recognize his name when asked about him.
Although parole was abolished for any crime committed after Jan. 1, 1995, the Virginia Supreme Court later ruled that offenders whose juries had not been informed that parole was not a possibility for a defendant if found guilty were entitled to a new trial. The General Assembly subsequently adopted legislation providing that offenders who met the Fishback criteria would be eligible for parole. Smith met those criteria. (See Fishback v. Commonwealth and Sec. 53.1-165.1)
There are likely other offenders incarcerated whose circumstances are similar to Elbert Smith’s, but who have not been granted parole. However, Smith had a few things going for him that other offenders do not have.
First, he had a well-known lawyer representing him pro bono, who was willing to dig into the case and put some time into it. That lawyer was none other than Jerry Kilgore. Yes, that Jerry Kilgore. The one who was Secretary of Public Safety under Republican Gov. George “No Parole” Allen and later was Attorney General and a candidate for governor.
Second, he has a son who is a player in the NBA. Dorian Finney-Smith was a basketball star at I.C. Norcom High School in Portsmouth and went on to the pros after playing for Virginia Tech and the University of Florida. When Elbert Smith became eligible for parole, his son was playing for the Dallas Mavericks (he has subsequently been traded to the Nets.) The chief of staff for the Mavericks’ owner, Mark Cuban, was also a graduate of the University of Florida and became interested in Smith-Finney’s situation. He dug into the case and recruited Kilgore to take it on. Cuban and other NBA heavyweights wrote lots of letters in support of Smith’s release on parole.
The final advantage that Elbert Smith had was a stable environment awaiting him upon release. With a millionaire son, he would not have to worry about where he was going to live or how he was going to afford food.
Elbert Smith was granted parole in July of this year. After completing a required pre-release program, on Tuesday of this week, he walked out of prison and was greeted by his son and family.
A tip of the hat to Dwight Yancey of Cardinal News who has set this story out in more detail.
