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evil.” He assured the dispatcher that he’d placed the gun
on the kitchen counter. When Parker County deputies
arrived on the scene, in the 150 block of River Creek
Lane in Annetta South, they found Jami Evans, 48, and
Mallory Evans, 15, inside the home. Both were dead from
gunshot wounds.
Jake Evans was arrested on the scene and Smith was
named as Evans’ defense attorney.
12
Case On Hold
The capital murder case against Jake Evans was stalled
in time and remained that way for more than two years.
“The US Supreme Court had already banned death
sentences for defendants 17 and younger and later ruled
that life without parole for defendants under 18 is also
unconstitutional,” Smith said.
Those were the only options offered for teens accused
of capital murder in the State of Texas at the time.
Though the Texas Legislature had made attempts to
alleviate the problem, no one was really certain whether
their fix would hold up under constitutional scrutiny.
The solution was finally reached, taking into consid-
eration the family’s wishes, Evans’ age and his lack of a
criminal record, a plea agreement was reached — one
that was considered the best solution for everyone
concerned.
“This is a horrible tragedy. When something like this
happens, it’s just impossible to know how the family is
supposed to deal with it,” Smith said. “They have been
working hard to deal with all the circumstances.”
Jacob Ryan “Jake” Evans pleaded guilty to two counts
of murder in District Court on April 30, 2015. As part of
the plea agreement, the state waived the capital murder
charge. Evans must serve at least half his sentence before
he’s eligible for parole.
It was a brilliant solution to a perplexing situation, one
that Smith refuses to take credit for.
“It was Larry Moore’s idea,” Smith said. “It was. Larry
Moore is one of the better trial lawyers ever to practice in
Parker County, or anywhere else for that matter. He has
been fantastic throughout his career, all types of trials.
Toward the end of his career, he mainly handled death
penalty cases. Now he’s working as a prosecutor for
Tarrant County.”
After decades as a partner at Vick, Carney & Smith,
Smith joined the firm of Harris, Finley & Bogle. His focus
is on civil cases.
If you think Smith is opting for an easier caseload,
think again.
“I’ve got several interesting, challenging cases I’m
working on, and I work more hours now than ever,”
Smith said. “I work approximately 50 to 60 hours a
week.”
Smith enjoys the work.
“I’ve got all these good people working with me,”
Smith said, adding that he enjoys working with young
attorneys. “I have a new attorney named Bryson Burcy
I’m working with now. He’s 34 years old, he’s a good guy
with a nice family.”
At 72, retirement is not in Smith’s short-range plan.
“I don’t have any aspirations to stop practicing law,”
Smith said. “I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t do
this.”
So many things have changed since 1974, when Smith
first became an attorney.
“Technology is the biggest change,” Smith said. “It
has been so beneficial because there are so many ways
you can investigate and document a case; body cameras,
[and] video tape crime scenes.”
One big change Smith brought about during his time
as Parker County District Attorney was to change the
agency that handled medical examiner’s cases. Until
then, the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office
handled all of Parker County’s ME cases. Today, Parker
County’s forensic work is handled by the Tarrant County
Medical Examiner’s Office.
“I worked with Dr. Nizam Peerwani and we were able
to set up a Medical Examiners District,” Smith said. “We
were able to go to Commissioners Court and they agreed.
That was probably one of the best things that happened
in Parker County citizenry because the cause of death
is so important, and to be able to handle death on this
level, we were able to work more effectively with the Fort
Worth Crime Team.”
“Technology has given us the opportunity to improve
on so many things, to make investigations better,” Smith
said.
“The people are better trained, which is so important.
The best part of my job as a DA was that I met so many
highly qualified people. So as an invaluable learning
experience it was unbelievable. At the same time, all of
the fields were getting better and better at what they do.”
As for Smith’s personal life, his wife, Janice Smith, is
now retired from teaching at Weatherford High School.
She enjoys spending time with their two daughters, two
grandsons and two granddaughters.
“As a matter of fact, as I sit here, my oldest daughter
(Ellen Smith Yost) is starting her first day of law schoo l,”
Smith said. “She graduated college in 1997 and was
admitted to law school at UT Austin, went to her first
class and decided she just didn’t want to do it. Now some
20 years later, she knocked the LSAT out of the ball park.
I have two grandsons, 10 and eight, and then my younger
daughter (Susan Smith Barnes), she has two little ones,
ages three and five, so we are fortunate in that regard, as
well.”
When looking back over his career, what does Smith
treasure most?
“That I have worked with a lot of great people, includ-
ing Mr. Dan Carney, and another great partner of mine
is Tom Vick. I have been extremely fortunate to work
with some really good people. So many good lawyers
and people with so many talents. I’ve worked with Don
Chrestman. He’s one of the best district court judges
we’ve ever had here, and Judge Jim Mullen, talk about a
bright guy. My brother of course, Brock Smith, appointed
by Gov. Greg Abbott, was sworn in as the Judge of the
271st Judicial District Court. I am a lucky guy!”