In the quiet, rural landscape of Angola, Indiana, a heated argument on a country road shattered the peace and ended a life. It was on March 9, 2016, that 51-year-old Rusty Scott Smith, a white male, was shot and killed in front of his own home. The fatal confrontation was not with a stranger, but with his own son, Cody S. Smith.
On that Wednesday afternoon, just before 12:30, a call to Steuben County 911 reported a man possibly shot on West 400 North.
When sheriff's deputies arrived, they found Rusty Smith deceased near the road from what appeared to be a gunshot wound. Witnesses at the scene, including a mail carrier, painted a grim picture of the events that had unfolded. They described a heated argument between Rusty and his son, Cody, which escalated tragically. The mail carrier reported seeing Rusty lying bleeding in the roadway, and Cody allegedly admitted to her that he had shot his father.
Following the shooting, Cody, who was 25 years old at the time, fled the scene in a car. He was accompanied by a 24-year-old woman and an infant. A search for Cody ensued, involving multiple police agencies. Nearly three hours later, authorities located him, the woman, and the child at a residence on West Nevada Mills Road. Cody was arrested without incident. The woman was also taken into custody but was later released without any charges being filed against her. The infant was placed in the care of the Indiana Department of Child Services.
Cody S. Smith was taken to the Steuben County Jail and faced a preliminary charge of murder. He was arraigned via video conference in Steuben Superior Court and was ordered to be held without bond. During police interviews, Cody reportedly made conflicting statements, at times admitting to the shooting and at other times denying it. Witnesses described him as being agitated and making random statements, suggesting a state of mental distress. The investigation into the patricide was turned over to the Steuben County Prosecutor's Office for the filing of formal charges and further legal proceedings.
