Suzanne Smith, South Carolina Mother drowned his two young sons At a lake in the 1990s, with a parole hearing scheduled in a month.
Smith, then 22, strapped his sons, Michael and Alexander Smith, into the back seat of his car in October 1994, and watched as the car rolled away. John D. Lake in Union County. It took six minutes for both the boys, one aged 3 years and the other just 14 months, to drown.
Former Union County prosecutor Tommy Pope, now a South Carolina state representative, told Fox News Digital, “She spent nine days claiming that the car thief had taken the children and was asking for help, so the search was on. ” “To be honest, I believed he probably hid (the children) somewhere, because based on my law enforcement experience, I didn’t think a car thief would take children.”
Specifically, Smith lied to investigators and the press after his sons were murdered, falsely claiming that a black man had caught him with Michael and Alexander inside the vehicle.
Susan Smith, pictured in a mugshot on the left, as a 22-year-old girl in 1994, on the right, has been imprisoned in South Carolina for nearly 30 years for the murders of her two sons. (South Carolina Department of Corrections)
Pope recalled, “She was on every major station, ‘Good Morning America,’ you name it, she was doing it, and she was pleading for kids.” “One thing I noticed from the beginning – I had some video footage from a local TV station that was actually at the house that she went to that night when she Claimed he was carjacked. And (Smith’s) husband David was called to the scene. And of course, he looked like someone who had just been told that his children had been kidnapped. And Susan was somewhat excited about being on television. I think he really liked the attention.”
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Susan Smith was convicted of murdering her two sons, 3-year-old Michael Daniel Smith and 14-month-old Alexander Tyler Smith, on July 22, 1995. (Greg Smith/Corbis)
As far as motive is concerned, Pope said that Smith was having an extramarital affair at the time with Tom Findlay, the son of a local, wealthy business owner, who wrote a letter to Smith a week before the murders telling the 22-year-old that while he was romantically interested in her, he was not suitable for raising children The Birmingham News reported In an interview with Findlay in 2005.
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That letter will become an important part of evidence in the prosecution’s case.
Susan Smith was sentenced to life in prison for the murders of her two sons. (William Campbell/Sigma)
“I don’t think he meant to tell her to get rid of her kids. I think he was trying to break up with her because she lost interest. And I think he took it to heart. Took because she envisioned the luxurious life of a rich man,” said New York Post columnist Andrea Pair, who reported on the murders in 1994 and wrote a book about the case called “Mother Love, Deadly Love: The Susan Smith Murders.” Wrote a book.
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Susan Smith was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after the murders of her two sons in 1994. (Brooks Craft LLC/Sigma)
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Meanwhile, during her 30 years in prison, Smith, now 52, has reportedly been involved in sexual relationships with prison guards, a prison source said. interviews with people In 2020.
“He’s not having to spend a terrible time behind bars.”
Pope calls for death penalty Smith during his trial in 1995And he doesn’t think he should be eligible for parole today.
“Some jurors, after the fact, even said that she gave up her life under the theory that she would repent and spend her time thinking about Michael and Alex. Well, she The conduct has proven that she has had sexual relations with guards, her Facebook friends and sugar daddies are waiting for her to come out,” Pope said. “Her focus is on what’s best for Susan, not what happened to Michael and Alex.”
Peyser also does not believe Smith should be eligible for parole, as he lacked remorse or ownership for his actions during his three decades in prison.
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Susan Smith initially claimed that she was carjacked, but evidence later revealed that she killed her own two young sons, Michael and Alexander. (Brooks Craft LLC/Sigma)
Peyser said, “He caused a lot of harm, he led the investigation of all kinds of innocent men. It’s unfair in every way. He’s really a tragic and terrible person.”
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Pacer described Union City as “a little crazy” at the time she was covering the case.
“Of course, she was a woman who grew up there, lived there most of her life, and the town embraced her while blaming her husband, who is actually innocent in this situation. So the whole thing It was really horrible,” Peyser recalled.
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A Facebook page dedicated to Michael and Alexander Smith is encouraging its followers to submit letters to the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services protesting Smith’s release.
