Real hard, Etute said. Dont target or lure anyone under that perception. Etute then claimed he got up, stood next to the bed and asked Smith "Why didnt you tell me?" Jerry Paul Smith Wiki Jerry Paul Smith Biography Who was Jerry Paul Smith ? Born May 18, 1981 in Montgomery County, VA, he was the son of the late Jerry . He is now suspended from both the team and the university. He has been a reporter for The Roanoke Times for more than three decades. Turk contrasted his client with the victim in stark terms on Friday. A suspended Virginia Tech football player accused of killing a gay man has said he became enraged after discovering the person he had met for a sexual encounter was male. "If the defense were to raise the LGBTQ panic defense, it's not that they're prohibited from speaking about it. I hope this terrible incident will make more real the jeopardy and the work we still have to do to prevent the kind of knee-jerk, irrational behavior that weve grown up with as males in our society.. Im trying to stay strong for the people that support me, I feel like Ive let a lot of people down. It appears that Smith lived as a man during his day to day life, including at work, as his family refer to him with male pronouns, however he had multiple social media accounts where he posed as his alter ego, a woman named Angie.Etute did not discover Smith was a man until they met again on May 31 for a second sexual encounter at Smiths apartment. The prosecution relied on expert testimony from the likes of state medical examiner Dr. Amy Tharp and forensic Detective Mike Czernicki to make sure the jury understood the level of damage Etute inflicted. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. All the bones in Smith's face were broken and his teeth were missing, the report said. Etute reportedly told police Smith did not assault him and that he heard bubbling and gurgling as he left Smiths home but didn't call the police. For example, Congress expanded the definition of hate crimes in 2009, adding protections against crimes based on gender identity or sexual orientation and allowing a federal prosecution when it is in the public interest. Oma valikuid saate igal ajal muuta privaatsusseadete kaudu. Roanoke City Council member Joe Cobb, who identifies as a member of the regions LGBT community, had similar thoughts, saying the larger picture was of how LGBTQ people are seen by the wider society and often have been blamed for crimes in which they were the victims. Smith was discovered dead the following day after his family requested a welfare check. Female carer who bit off part of a pub landlady's ear during vicious bar brawl is jailed for 14 months. Attorneys said Isimemen Etute matched with Smith on Tinder, which led to a sexual encounter in April 2021. Etute is on suspension from Virginia Tech and its football team during the investigation, the Associated Press reported. Etute appeared in Montgomery County General District Court in Christiansburg Wednesday. ", Turk responded by telling the court, "I'm not saying what happened was acceptable, but this was more than someone just showing up to an apartment and punching someone.". CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. A jury found former Virginia Tech football player Isimemen "Isi" Etute not guilty of second-degree murder Friday in the death of Blacksburg resident Jerry Paul Smith . A spokeswoman for the FBI has said the agency is assisting in the investigation. The judge sidestepped the substance of the arguments since the court was only being asked if the defense met what he described as an extraordinarily low standard to allow the jury to consider self-defense. Mary Pettitt, the Montgomery County commonwealths attorney who is pursuing the second-degree murder charge, wrote in an email that Virginia law has a hate crime enhancement statute for assault and battery but not for murder. Beaming Princess of Wales watches a young boy backflip during St David's Day Mike Tindall's latest money-making scheme! On Friday, Roem said it's her understanding that because the trial will begin after the new law goes into effect next month, it will apply when Etuti's case reaches the courts. It isn't clear from media reports why Etute thought Smith was a woman during the initial encounter. Dont target or lure anyone under that perception. Ultimately, authorities will have to decide whether a case is more suitable for federal or state prosecution although cases can be brought in both court systems without violating a defendants protection against double jeopardy, Levin said. CHRISTIANSBURG Former Virginia Tech football player Isimemen Etute was found not guilty Friday in the beating death of Jerry Paul Smith following a three-day trial in Montgomery County Circuit It appears that Smith lived as a man during his day to day life, including at work, and his family referred to him with male pronouns. Nobody deserves to die, but I dont mind saying, dont pretend you are something that you are not, Turk told reporters outside the courtroom. "You cannot and you will not be able to get away with murdering an LGBTQ person in Virginia simply because you feel like it. When the verdict was read to the courtroom, Etutes father, David, collapsed in his seat while his wife Nichelle sobbed. Etute, a member of Virginia Tech's 2021 recruiting class, was suspended from the team . Girl, 2, looks star-struck as she presents Kate with a gift of Daffodils for St David's A bargain fit for a king: Grade II-listed manor house complete with barn and gatehouse is listed at auction Who said black and white pics were flattering! Etute told prosecutors that after learning Smith was not anatomically female, he beat them. The defendant mother Michelle Etute spoke to her sons character, telling the court he is not a flight risk and had never been in any trouble,WDBJ7.comreported. Etute and his parents who left the courtroom through a back exit didnt have a statement to make at this time, according to Turk. I was upset with myself, even, because I never intended to harm anyone.. Etute lifted his defense attorney Jimmy Turk off the ground in a bear hug with both of them crying. SUSPECT CHARGED WITH MURDER OF YOUNG BOY IN CALIFORNIA ROAD RAGE SHOOTING. Mike Gangloff covers crime, breaking news and courts in the New River Valley. When do the clocks change in 2023? His attorney, Jimmy Turk, told a judge the case was more than someone just showing up to an apartment and punching someone.. When he returned to the the darkened Blacksburg apartment on May 31 for what Angie believed would be another sexual encounter, Etute allegedly told detectives, he used his phone flashlight to illuminate her face and discovered she was a man. An autopsy report revealed Smith died from blunt force trauma to the head, theRichmond-Times Dispatchreported.All the bones in Smiths face were broken and his teeth were missing, the report said. He returned to Smith's apartment May 31, realized Smith was a man, and flew into a rage. This is about preventing murder and assault," Roem added. Joe Cobb is a member of the Roanoke City Council. 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Jerry Paul Smith, 40 known as Gigi by his nephews of Blacksburg, VA departed this life, June 1, 2021, at his home. A former Virginia Tech football player accused of killing a man he'd had a sexual encounter with, believing he was a woman, has been acquitted of murder. 69-year-old suffers stroke in his N.C. home; Realtor showing house leaves him there. Both experts testified about a frothy fluid coming out of Smiths mouth that ran down his sweatshirt in the crime scene photos. The company's filing status is listed as Active and its File Number is 11125522. Isimemen "Isi" David Etute is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Jerry Paul Smith, a restaurant worker. Ralph Northam signed legislation that will apply to the use of such defenses in Virginia on July 1. Etute, who is charged with second-degree murder, was arrested on June 2. Killing of Jerry Paul Smith called 'irrational,' Isi Etute defense called discriminatory. To charge a hate crime, prosecutors would have to determine whether the defendant acted with a bias as defined under the law, according to Timothy Heaphy, who served as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Virginia under President Barack Obamas administration. The case went to a grand jury at Montgomery Circuit Court on Tuesday, Oct. 26. The Roanoke Times reports a jury acquitted Isimemen Etute on a second-degree murder charge for the death of 40-year-old Jerry Paul Smith.The jury reportedly deliberated for about three hours following the trial that lasted . The charges are a footnote to mistaken-gender killing, of which Isimemen David Etute was acquitted. Isimemen David Etute at the end of his trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court in Christiansburg on Friday. Etute said that he accompanied Angie to the darkened bedroom and, after a period of time, asked to have sexual intercourse. Smiths body was discovered in his apartment the following day, Blacksburg Police said in arelease. The most recent instance he cited was in Norfolk in 2011, after 18-year-old Deandre Moore fatally stabbed Jacques Cowell, 20. Im truly sorry for my actions.. Etute, 18, a former star at Cox High School, was preparing for his first season at Virginia Tech when he was arrested and charged in the death of Jerry Paul Smith. Businessman Jerry Smith was found . Ismemen Etute is seen on a Fox 46 broadcast. (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via The Associated Press) Smiths family quickly left the room. The campaign said that since it started tracking such violence in 2013, it has never witnessed so many deaths by this point in the year. The medical examiner said he died of blunt force trauma, and the autopsy report revealed that every bone in his face was broken, he had missing teeth and he'd sustained multiple facial fractures, according to the paper. Judge Mike Fleenor has yet to rule on the defenses motion but said he would do so before jury deliberations. The medical examiner says Smith died from blunt force injuries to the head . The linebackers parents and sister attended Wednesdays hearing, as well as a dozen Virginia Tech football players, most of whom were wearing team gear, according to the report. Skeptical of AP African American Studies, Dems Introduce Resolution to Celebrate Black LGBTQ+ Americans, Latinx Trans Woman Killed in Houston in Apparent Murder-Suicide, Longtime Lesbian Activist Achebe Betty Powell Dies at 82. You have permission to edit this article. Nobody deserves to die, but I dont mind saying, dont pretend you are something that you are not, Turk later told reporters. Etute believed that the person he had hooked up with was a woman named Angie. Following the revelation, Etute punched Smith in the face five times before he fell to the ground. Etute took the stand on the third day of his trial and gave a play-by-play of what he now says happened the night that Smith died, according to The Roanoke Times. No one has identified Smith as transgender; his family has said he was a gay man. The Registered Agent on file for this company is Jerry Paul Smith and is located at 119 N Main St Apt 207 Suite 207, Blacksburg, VA 24060-3945. His teeth had also been knocked out. Unlike a lot of crimes, these involve deeply felt community harm in which an entire segment of the population is victimized, Levin said. Dont target or lure anyone under that perception. Etute traffic charges resolved in Radford The charges are a footnote to mistaken-gender killing, of which Isimemen David . He was having sexual relations with a 40 year old person known as either Jerry Smith or Angie Smith. Turk later addressed reporters outside of court. The FBI listed 7,314 hate crime incidents in 2019. 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