UPDATE: Ronald Jack Anderson, 61, was charged with the murder of Clifford Smith, who was fatally shot on Oct. 31, 1982 In the autumn of 1982, the life of 24-year-old Clifford Smith of Seymour, Indiana, was cut tragically short. His wife reported him missing on November 4th of that year, initiating a search that would end in sorrow. About a month later, on December 1st, two animal trappers discovered his body in a bayou near the White River, just north of Seymour. An autopsy would later confirm that the young man died from a gunshot wound to the head.
For decades, the case remained cold, leaving a family without answers and a community with a lingering sense of unease.
The initial investigation in 1982 yielded no arrests, and the case grew cold over the years. However, in September 2015, a renewed effort by the Indiana State Police brought fresh eyes to the long-unsolved homicide. Detectives re-examined evidence and conducted new interviews. This persistent police work eventually pointed toward a suspect who had been present with Smith on the night he disappeared. Investigators learned that on the late evening of October 30, 1982, Clifford Smith was at a residence with several other people, including his brother-in-law, Ronald J. Anderson.
After years of meticulous investigation, a breakthrough finally came. On October 31, 2023, exactly 41 years after Smith was killed, authorities arrested 61-year-old Ronald J. Anderson at his home in Seymour. The investigation indicated that on the night of Smith's disappearance, Anderson had retrieved a shotgun from the house, loaded it, and left in a vehicle with Smith, who was never seen alive again. Evidence suggested that Anderson returned to the home with the shotgun and later went back to the crime scene to hide potential evidence.
Initially charged with murder, Ronald J. Anderson ultimately pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter in April 2025. The plea agreement led to the dismissal of the murder charge. On May 12, 2025, a Jackson County Circuit Court judge sentenced Anderson to 18 years in prison for the killing of his brother-in-law more than four decades earlier, finally bringing a measure of closure to the family of Clifford Smith.
