Home Audio from the Byron Smith Burglary Killings

[TacticalInstruct]

He went way beyond self-defense in my opinion. These files include audio from his home, as well as statements he gave to police.

On November 22 (Thanksgiving Day), 2012, Haile Kifer, 18, and her cousin, Nicholas Brady, 17, broke into the home of Byron David Smith in Little Falls, Minnesota.

Smith, armed with a Ruger Mini-14, shot the teens separately and minutes apart as they entered the basement where he was, later stating to police he was worried about them being armed.

By his account to police, he shot Brady twice at the top of the basement stairs, and once in the face fatally after he fell to the bottom of the stairs. Minutes later when Kifer entered the basement, he shot her at the top of the stairs.

Wounded, she fell down the stairs, and after Smith's rifle jammed, he shot her multiple times in the chest with a .22-caliber revolver, dragged her across the floor to set her beside the body of her cousin, and then shot her fatally under the chin.

Smith then waited until Friday to have a neighbor call police, saying that he did not want to bother law enforcement on Thanksgiving.
Video and audio of the events was recorded by Smith's security system.

Smith, 64, was retired from the U.S. State Department and had a history of international travel to Moscow, Bangkok and Beijing.

Smith's brother described him as a retired security engineering officer. The home had been previously burglarized multiple times according to the brother, although only one burglary had been reported to police.

Morrison County Sheriff Michel Wetzel believed the teenagers were burglarizing Smith's residence Thanksgiving Day.

Brady's sister claimed Brady stole drugs from her home August 28 in a case that was still under investigation.
Evidence recovered from the car driven by Brady was linked to a burglary of the residence of a retired teacher the night before he and Kifer were slain by Byron Smith.

Smith's statements to police describe delivering killing shots to the heads of both victims after he had shot them on the stairs and they had fallen to the basement floor wounded.

In his statement, Smith said that Kifer had let out a short laugh after she fell down the stairs, saying "If you're trying to shoot somebody and they laugh at you, you go again."

In police interviews Smith acknowledged "firing more shots than I needed to" and that he fired "a good clean finishing shot" into Kifer's head.

Analysts have said that the initial shootings would probably have been justified under Minnesota's Castle law, but that the subsequent shots were not justified once any threat had been removed.

Sheriff Wetzel said that the law "doesn't permit you to execute somebody once a threat is gone."

Hamline University School of Law professor Joseph Olson: "I think the first shot is justified. After the person is no longer a threat because they're seriously wounded, the application of self-defense is over."

Smith was initially charged with two counts of second degree murder. In April 2013, he was indicted on two counts of first degree murder.

Bail was later set at $50,000 which Smith posted. On April 29, 2014, Byron David Smith was found guilty on two counts of 1st Degree Murder with premeditation and on two counts of 2nd Degree Murder after three hours of jury deliberations.

[kellyhound]

damn, that audio from the house when he fired the shots

[Photoplay]

Originally Posted by TacticalInstruct

He went way beyond self-defense.

I agree!
Thanks Tactical Good Post.

[Pyramid_Head]

Cold blooded shit.

[pbaj12]

3:20 - 3:35
13:50 - 14:25

Those are the shots and some dialogue if anyone is wondering.

[Shakey]

Tape kind of has that horror movie sound.

[Shakey]

He is guilty

[genericname79]

Thanks for posting this. I've been somewhat obsessed with this case recently. It's been a controversial case because most people can't understand how this man was convicted of murder for killing two people who were burglarizing his home.

One thing that wasn't mentioned in the article above was that Smith intentionally parked his truck several blocks away to make it look like no one was home. He also laid out a plastic tarp in his basement beforehand to put the bodies on. He sat in a chair in his basement with water, snacks, and a book and just waited for them.

The audio recordings were some of the strongest evidence against him at trial, so if the idiot wouldn't have recorded the whole thing who knows if he would've been convicted.

[illdude31]

I'm on the fence about this case these kids knew what they were doing they did break into his home and we all know if they survived he would be sued for using extensive force in my book if you break into someones home you have no rights whatever happens to you, you asked for it after listening the audio he doesn't seems like crazy person he's smart person if he planned to kill these kids i'm sure he would delete audio recordings because those things were only thing that got him found guilty

[Megamel29]

Originally Posted by illdude31

I'm on the fence about this case these kids knew what they were doing they did break into his home and we all know if they survived he would be sued for using extensive force in my book if you break into someones home you have no rights whatever happens to you, you asked for it after listening the audio he doesn't seems like crazy person he's smart person if he planned to kill these kids i'm sure he would delete audio recordings because those things were only thing that got him found guilty

He didn't delete the recordings because he thought he was within his rights to shoot those people. But what he was really doing was laying in wait to shoot the people who kept breaking into his house. He didn't want to just injure them. He wanted them dead. He showed a wanton disregard for human life. He planned to kill them and he did.