Alpha Elizabeth Smith, a 62-year-old female, was tragically killed on the morning of Sunday, March 28, 2021, in Essex, Maryland, during a string of violent acts that spanned across Baltimore County. Known affectionately as 'Alfie' to her friends and family, she was a cherished mother, grandmother, and hardworking individual recognized for her infectious smile and unwavering faith.
Those who knew her described her as a social butterfly and the life of any party.
On that Sunday morning, just before 7 a.m., Smith was on her way to her job at a Food Lion when she made a quick stop at a Royal Farms convenience store, located near her home in Essex, to buy a soda. Before she could even exit her vehicle, a man she had never met blocked her car and fatally shot her. This senseless act of violence was just the beginning of a deadly rampage.
The perpetrator was later identified by police as 27-year-old Joshua Green. After killing Smith, Green continued his assault inside the Royal Farms, where he shot and killed another customer, 43-year-old Silvesta Daye, Jr., and wounded a 22-year-old store employee. The series of events had begun earlier at the home of Green's parents in Baldwin. There, he shot and killed his mother and father, 62-year-old Olivia Green and 58-year-old Douglas Green.
Following the shootings at the convenience store, law enforcement responded to a fire at an apartment complex on Shadetree Road. In the parking lot, they discovered Green's body with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. It was determined that Green had set his own apartment on fire before taking his life. Investigators believe Green acted alone in this horrific series of events that claimed five lives, including his own. The motive for the shootings remains unknown, and police have indicated that Green had no prior criminal record and had legally purchased the firearm used in the attacks.
