Tristan Montgomery Smith was a kind and selfless young man with a great sense of humor who was known as the glue that held his family together. A 23-year-old White male from Powell, Tennessee, Tristan was a 2018 graduate of Halls High School and was majoring in theater at Pellissippi State Community College. He was fascinated with other cultures, teaching himself multiple languages with plans to one day travel through Europe and Asia.
His family had previously endured the loss of two of his brothers, Samuel and Shawn.
On the morning of December 22, 2022, Tristan was at his job at the Rural King store in the Halls Crossroads area of Knoxville. Around 10:40 a.m., he approached a man who was attempting to shoplift ammunition and bungee cords. Surveillance footage from the store showed the man running out of an emergency exit, with Tristan following him outside. The man then shot Tristan and fled the scene in a car.
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office immediately launched a massive manhunt. More than 40 officers were involved in the search, using security videos from other local businesses to help identify a suspect. Their efforts led them to 18-year-old Larry McBee Jr., who was arrested in Knoxville just after 3:30 a.m. the following day.
McBee’s trial began in late 2024. Prosecutors presented the surveillance footage from the store, along with testimony from several witnesses. A shopper testified that he had seen McBee placing items into his bag inside the store. An investigator told the court that McBee’s phone contained searches for Rural King, Knoxville police response times, and nearby gun shops. A neighbor also testified that McBee came to her house shortly after the shooting and admitted to it after she showed him a news photo of the suspect.
In December 2024, after deliberating for less than an hour, a Knox County jury found Larry McBee Jr. guilty of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison.
