A second autopsy performed on Stephen Smith, the openly gay teenager found dead in the middle of a South Carolina road in 2015, largely confirmed the findings of the first autopsy that determined the teen died as the result of a hit and run, an expert told Law&Crime.
Dr. D’Michelle DuPre oversaw the exhumation and second autopsy of Smith earlier this year. Smith’s mother, Sandy Smith, had raised money on GoFundMe to pay for the second autopsy as she searched for answers about what happened to her son. Dr. DuPre said experts who examined Smith’s remains and the crime scene have concluded that something hanging off a vehicle hit Smith in the forehead, causing his death in July 2015.
“Essentially, it was the same thing. There were some very minor differences,” Dr. DuPre said about the results. “Even though we don’t believe that he was struck with the vehicle proper, we believe he was struck with something on or attached to the vehicle. And so technically, it is still a hit and run.”
Stephen Smith, an LGBTQ activist and nursing student, died under suspicious circumstances in July 2015. (Justice for Stephen N. Smith Family Page; with permission)
The object that hit Smith remains a mystery. But Ronnie Richter, one of the lawyers representing Smith’s mother, Sandy Smith, said he’s confident that Smith wasn’t struck by a bat.
“Could have been a mirror, could’ve been a ladder, or some fixed extension of the vehicle is more likely than not, according to our experts,” Richter said. “If someone hung out of a vehicle, for example, and swung an object that the force that would be realized on the hands of the of the perpetrator would be as great as the force that was inflicted on Stephen.”
The theory about someone hitting Smith with a bat was featured in at least one documentary about Alex Murdaugh, the disbarred South Carolina lawyer who’s serving two life sentences for the 2021 murders of his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, and son, Paul Murdaugh.
Richter said experts told him that had that happened, the person with the bat would have suffered serious injuries to their hands. He also said the pattern of the injury Smith suffered is not consistent with a bat. Documentaries and some podcasts have also discussed whether Smith’s high school classmate, Buster Murdaugh, had a hand in Smith’s death.
The rumor mill in Hampton, South Carolina, fueled that speculation. Buster Murdaugh issued a statement earlier this year vehemently denying any involvement. Dr. DuPre said she does not believe the Murdaughs are responsible for Smith’s death.
“We don’t know who was in the vehicle, of course, not yet,” said Dr. DuPre. “We have some suspicions and people of interest. But I don’t believe the Murdaughs were involved. I believe this was truly an accident, a tragic accident.”
Even if Smith’s death was an accident, it is still a crime since the driver left the scene and did not call for help or report hitting a person. It’s also not clear whether the driver of the vehicle intentionally hit Smith or hit him by accident.
Stephen Smith, right, died under suspicious circumstances in July 2015.
The investigation into Smith’s death seemed to be heating up earlier this year following Alex Murdaugh’s double murder trial.
Agents with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) had more time to look into Smith’s case. Richter’s law partner, Eric Bland, told Law&Crime last summer that a statewide grand jury was investigating Smith’s death, and he expected some news by Labor Day.
But the holiday passed without word of an arrest or a suspect named. Bland voiced frustration about the case on X, formerly Twitter, last week. He said SLED Chief Mark Keel told him jury tampering allegations in Alex Murdaugh’s double murder trial required agents’ attention.
Bland also said those agents were preparing for Murdaugh’s financial crimes trial, which did not happen because of an 11th-hour plea agreement. Murdaugh was sentenced to 27 years in prison Tuesday for those crimes.
“We’ve had many conversations with Chief Keel. We have a great deal of confidence in his agency. And so, yes, I think when they start applying their full resources and demanding answers, that somewhere someone in this chain with material information is going to break it and is going to share.”
Sandy Smith has been offering a $30,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest. Richter said Smith plans to raise the reward to $40,000 with the money from the GoFundMe.
“Sandy, she’s got the patience of Job. She’s waiting for eight years,” Richter said. “Is it frustrating? Yes. But we’re confident that sled is behind this and that they will pick up this investigation and see it to conclusion.”
Anyone with information about Stephen Smith’s death can contact SLED at 1-800-CALL-SLED or the offices of Bland Richter.
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