People v. Smith, Jr.

I. FACTS

A. Guilt Phase 1. Prosecution In December 1997, defendant was 21 years old and living with his father in Redding. During that month he met his younger half sister, Lori Smith, for the first time. Lori had been living in Washington State. Defendant‟s older brother, Timothy Smith, also arrived from Washington with his fiancée, Lora Sinner.3 Defendant married Jessica Smith in January 1998. Shortly thereafter, he began a relationship with Amy S., a 14-year-old runaway. Defendant‟s friend Eric Rubio became romantically involved with defendant‟s sister Lori. Sinner ended her engagement with Timothy and began to associate with defendant, Amy, Eric, and Lori. Toward the end of February this group, led by defendant, began an extended camping trip on private land in Shasta County. Of the five, Sinner was the only person without a partner. She flirted with defendant, which angered Amy. Defendant returned Sinner‟s attention in order to maintain access to her car, which they used to drive into town from camp. About a

For the sake of clarity, hereafter we refer to Lori Smith as “Lori,” and to Lora Sinner as “Sinner.”

2 week before Sinner‟s murder, Lori and Amy discussed…