On a tragic night in Shady Side, Maryland, the life of 44-year-old Linda Lynn McKenzie was cut short. In the early morning hours of June 1, 2017, the quiet of the area near Scott Town Road and Nick Road was shattered by the sound of gunshots. When officers from the Anne Arundel County Police arrived at the scene around 12:36 a.m., they discovered the bodies of McKenzie and her 48-year-old boyfriend, Leslie Michael Smith.
Both had sustained apparent gunshot wounds and were pronounced dead at the scene.
The couple, who lived together on a houseboat in the Rock Hold Creek area, had reportedly driven their vehicle into a ditch earlier that evening, leading to a loud argument between them. This disturbance attracted the attention of a local resident, Kirk Byron Matthews, who was 58 at the time. Matthews confronted McKenzie and Smith, threatening them and demanding they leave the area. Witnesses later reported seeing Matthews walking toward the couple while carrying a shotgun. Surveillance footage from the area captured a man matching his description walking away from the scene with what appeared to be a shotgun shortly after the gunshots were heard.
The investigation into the double homicide quickly pointed toward Matthews. He was arrested and subsequently charged with the murders of both Linda Lynn McKenzie and Leslie Michael Smith. During his trial, prosecutors argued that the couple's argument had disrupted a local drug market, which provoked Matthews. In October 2018, an Anne Arundel County Circuit Court jury found Kirk Byron Matthews guilty of two counts of second-degree murder, as well as firearm and ammunition charges. He received a sentence of 110 years in prison, with all but 80 years suspended, to be followed by five years of supervised probation.
However, in a later turn of events, the Maryland Court of Special Appeals overturned Matthews' conviction in February 2021. The court cited errors in the original trial, specifically regarding the improper allowance of expert testimony about the suspect's height. This decision opened the door for a potential new trial in the case.
