In the early morning hours of December 28, 2014, a house party on Colonial Avenue in Freeport, New York, turned deadly. Lyreek Crawley, a 21-year-old male, was attending the gathering of about 20 people when gunfire erupted. Crawley was struck in the head in the backyard of the residence and was pronounced dead at the scene by a Nassau County ambulance medical technician at 1:14 a.m. The initial alert to law enforcement came from the Shot Spotter system, a gunfire detection service, which was quickly followed by a 911 call.
The Nassau County Police Department quickly launched an investigation into the shooting, which they determined was not a random act. A few days later, on December 31, 2014, authorities publicly identified 21-year-old Autrey Smith of Roosevelt as the suspect. Police stated that Smith, who was also known as Autrey Watson and 'Pluto,' fired a semi-automatic pistol several times into the crowd at the party. It was unclear if Smith and Crawley knew each other prior to the incident, though they were both guests at the party which had been organized through social media. Smith fled the scene after the shooting.
On New Year's Day 2015, Autrey Smith surrendered to detectives at the First Precinct in Baldwin. He was subsequently charged with second-degree murder. After his surrender, it was revealed that Smith had fled to Cincinnati, Ohio, for three days before returning to New York. As the case proceeded toward trial, jury selection had already begun when Smith opted to accept a plea deal.
In September 2016, Autrey Smith pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in the first degree. His attorney claimed that Smith was 'involuntarily intoxicated' at the party after someone allegedly drugged his drink, and that he was 'sorry for the death of his friend.' The Nassau County District Attorney's office stated that Smith and Crawley were friends and that Smith began firing indiscriminately at the partygoers before striking Crawley in the head. As a result of his guilty plea, a judge sentenced Smith to 25 years in prison.
