Nearly three years after a native southwest Atlanta man was fatally shot outside his mother’s home, investigators continue to look for his killer.
Gregory Smith’s family is still troubled by the murder that police have characterized as a case of mistaken identity.
“That is hard to live with,” Smith’s wife, Donna Smith, said Monday. “Someone, as far as we know, doing nothing … minding their own business. We need the public’s help to come out and tell us what you know.”
With nearly a week to go before the three-year anniversary of Gregory Smith’s death, investigators say they have found a new lead into this cold case.
“We have new information that we’re following,” said Atlanta Police homicide commander, Capt. Paul Guerrucci.
He declined to disclose specifics.
On the night of Aug. 7, 2010, Gregory Smith arrived in Atlanta from South Carolina with his wife.
They had only been at his mother’s home in Atlanta’s Ben Hill neighborhood for roughly 30 minutes, when he said he was going to step out for a moment.
“He said, ‘I’ll be right back,’” Donna Smith said. “That meant he was either going to the store or he was going to go outside for a smoke.”
But 20 minutes later, Gregory Smith’s older brother, Reginald, found him dead inside his car.
The older Smith said he was coming to the house to see his younger brother and sister-in-law, and stopped behind two cars idling at the stop sign just up from their mother’s house on El Paso Road.
Reginald walked to the car and saw Gregory Smith laying back in his seat, shot to death.
Lena Smith, Gregory Smith’s mother, lamented learning of her son’s death as she returned home from New Orleans.
“When we were coming down, (police) said you can’t go any further … there was a crime scene,” Lena Smith said. “Somebody said: ‘Someone was killed down there.’ I did not know it was my child’.”
Gregory, a Washington High School grad and the father of two adult children, was killed less than a month before his 20th wedding anniversary, Donna Smith said.
The 6-foot-4, 240-pound victim was described by family as a gentle giant. His mother called a “big Teddy bear.”
“He was my tall, dark and handsome,” Donna Smith said. “He was the love of my life.”
The family has been devastated by the loss, and the stress of not knowing who is responsible has been difficult, said Donna Smith.
“It’s destroyed our family unit,” Donna she said. “It’s very hard now to get up and function day to day. His mother. Our two children. Close friends. We’re continuously trying to reach a new normal.”
Lena Smith said she couldn’t bear to return to the home where she raised Gregory
“I moved from that home I’d lived in for nearly 40 years,” she said in tears. “The only way to get out of my subdivision was to come by that spot each and every day … and I just couldn’t.”
Investigators ruled out robbery as a motive. Gregory Smith’s money, jewelry and wallet were found on him.
At least one possibility – that Gregory Smith was killed in the spillover from a gang-related fight – was considered early on in the case.
Now, as before when Donna Smith led family and loved ones in a canvass of the neighborhood, police and Gregory Smith’s family are asking for public help to find his killer.
“Somebody has to know something,” Lena Smith said. “I’m appealing to that person to come forward and tell what they know.”
And Donna Smith said she won’t rest until she learns who killed her husband.
“As long as there’s breathe and strength in my body, I’ll be calling police detectives to ask them what they know,” she said.
Anyone with information about Gregory Smith’s death is asked to call Atlanta Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477.
While anonymous calls are welcomed, the person who provides information that leads to an arrest may be eligible for a reward of up to $2,000 from Crime Stoppers.
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