On a summer evening in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the life of Richard W. Smith Jr., a 46-year-old Caucasian male, was tragically cut short. On August 18, 2005, Smith, a veteran police officer of 22 years, was involved in a fatal encounter while on duty. He and his partner, Officer Michael R. King, were dispatched to a location near the intersection of Ash Street SE and Gold Avenue SE to assist in taking a man into custody for a mental health evaluation.
Upon their arrival, the officers
were immediately met with gunfire. Officer King was killed instantly at the scene. Officer Smith was critically wounded and transported to the University of New Mexico Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. The shooting was sudden and violent, leaving no opportunity for the officers to react.
The suspect, a 48-year-old man, fled the scene on a motorcycle. A search for him ensued, and he was located approximately two hours later. As officers attempted to apprehend him, he crashed his motorcycle and was injured. It was later discovered that the suspect was also responsible for two other murders earlier that evening at a local motorcycle shop and the murder of a New Mexico Department of Transportation worker that morning. The suspect was ultimately charged with five counts of murder.
Subsequent legal proceedings revealed the suspect suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. He was found incompetent to stand trial for the killings and was sentenced to 179 years in a state mental institution. As of January 2022, he was still deemed incompetent to stand trial. Officer Smith was survived by his wife and daughter.
