Cody Wade Smith, a 33-year-old Marine staff sergeant from Jacksonville, North Carolina, was found dead on August 27, 2016, inside a burning home near Richlands, North Carolina. Smith, who had recently returned from a deployment to Europe, was discovered alongside 43-year-old Gregory Thomas Pearce, a Jacksonville therapist. The incident was a result of a violent confrontation involving Smith, his estranged wife Monica Rose Smith, and Pearce.
On August 11, 2016, Monica Smith, 32, served
Cody Smith with divorce papers. On the evening of August 27, Cody Smith arrived at Monica's house to drop off some personal property. However, he came with a backpack containing two handguns, duct tape, rope, lighter fluid, and matches, as well as a large can of gasoline in his vehicle. When Monica tried to get him to leave, he tied her up and used her phone to send text messages to Pearce, luring him to the house.
When Pearce arrived and discovered Monica tied up, he attempted to call 911 but was shot and killed by Cody Smith. Smith then sprayed lighter fluid on the floor and set the house on fire. At some point, Monica managed to get control of the handgun used to kill Pearce and fired one shot at Cody Smith, killing him. She then called 911 from the lawn of the burning home and stayed on the line with dispatchers until emergency responders arrived.
The Onslow County Sheriff's Office and District Attorney Ernie Lee confirmed that Monica Smith acted in self-defense and would not be charged for the death of Cody Smith. The evidence collected at the scene supported her account of the events, and it was determined that Cody Smith had entered the residence with criminal intent, including the intent to commit murder. Cody Smith had served as a Marine for 15 years, with deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, and had participated in the 2011 Operation Unified Protector over Libya.
