Born May 18, 1981 in Montgomery County, VA, he was the son of the late Jerry Wayne Smith and Sandra Cumbee Smith. At a time when were seeing record-high violence against our gay and transgender neighbors, I think the federal government can essentially make a policy statement that these kinds of cases should be prosecuted, he said. Left. Context: Isimemen Etute is an 18 male football player about to start at Virginia Tech. If you find this was in the heat of passion, you shouldnt find him guilty of second degree murder, the crime would be voluntary manslaughter, but what Im telling you is this was not self-defense, Jensen said. Etute had previously been to Smiths residence on April 10 for oral sex under the impression that he was going to meet someone named Angie, attorneys for both the defense and prosecution told Judge Randal Duncan, according to the Roanoke Times. To their family and co-workers, Angie was known as 40-year-old restaurant manager Jerry Paul Smith. Duncan granted bail and said there was no reason to believe that Etute would fail to appear for his trial or that he is a threat to the community. 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. The defendant told the court he believed he bruised [Smith] up a little but was surprised to learn from police that the victim had died. . Isimemen Etute, 19, was found not guilty of second degree murder by a Montgomery County jury on Friday for the beating death of Jerry Smith, 40, according to the Roanoke Times. He knew that worst case scenario he could have been looking at five to 40 years in the penitentiary on a second-degree murder conviction. Former Virginia Tech football player Isimemen Etute and his family have issued a statement to The Roanoke Times, Etute wasacquitted on second, Former Virginia Tech linebacker Isimemen Etute will get a chance to play football this season following his acquittal on a second-degree murde. The Roanoake Times reports that Isimemen Etute who claimed he'd been duped into thinking the man he later killed was a woman was acquitted of second-degree murder after a trial that lasted three days. 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The 19-year-old is accused of fatally beating Jerry Paul Smith, 40, after the two met on Tinder in May 2021. Listen to the story. Im just thankful for this jury. With no Virginia [hate] crime for me to even possibly charge, I dont have to make a call on whether it was an anti-gay violence, Pettitt wrote. Dont target or lure anyone under that perception. Please subscribe to keep reading. Etutes attorneys argued the beating was self-defense in a confrontation between the two in which the mans true identity was revealed. The law states that juries could not consider such reactions as legitimate justification. Smiths family attended the packed hearing as well as more than a dozen of Etutes teammates. The charges are a footnote to mistaken-gender killing, of which Isimemen David Etute was acquitted. Czernicki also testified to finding impressions of a shoe on Smiths face that would have required at least two blows. Jan. 25, 2013), the Government states that this matter remains pre-indictment and is part of ongoing investigation of a possible civil rights violation arising . View the profiles of people named Jerry Paul Smith. He is to be under house arrest in their custody in Williamsburg. No one has identified Smith as transgender; his family has said he was a gay man. VIVID AFFAIRS LLC is a Virginia Domestic Limited-Liability Company filed on October 22, 2020. She also told the court her son would help take care of his younger sister with special needs. She also told the court her son would help take care of his younger sister with special needs. Absolutely horrific, Roem tweeted. 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. A man he met on Tinder is charged with second-degree murder. Etutes mother spoke to her son's character, telling the court he is not a flight risk and had never been in any trouble,WDBJ7.com reported. Klpsates nuppu Aktsepteeri kik, nustute, et Yahoo ja meie partnerid ttlevad teie isikuandmeid ning kasutavad isikuprastatud reklaamide ja sisu kuvamiseks, reklaamide ning sisu mtmiseks, sihtrhma levaateks ja tootearenduseks selliseid tehnoloogiaid nagu kpsised. Dont target or lure anyone under that perception. All of the bones in Smiths face were broken, his teeth were knocked out, and he had cranial fractures, Morgan said. Defense attorney Jimmy Turk leaves the courthouse with the Etute family in Christiansburg in June. . Cops found the badly beaten mans body one day later, the newspaper reported. Ismemen David Etute, who appeared in Montgomery County District Court in Virginia on Wednesday for a bond hearing after being charged with second-degree murder, told police that he punched Smith five times in the face and continued punching and stomped Smith after he fell down ground in response to the revelation that Smith was not the woman he expected to meet, according to a summary of arguments made in court. Brunson accompanied Etute to Smiths apartment along with Jalen Hampton on May 31. Man died Wednesday. Gay panic refers to claiming, in court, that the reaction to finding out someone elses sexual orientation or gender identity justifies violent acts. In his opening statements on Wednesday, Defense attorney Jimmy Turk said his client beat Smith because it was the only thing reasonably could do to ensure he got out of Jerry Smiths apartment alive.. The company's filing status is listed as Active and its File Number is 11125522. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Nobody deserves to die, but I dont mind saying, dont pretend you are something that you are not, Turk later told reporters. 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 Court. Some said the details that emerged from Wednesdays bond hearing show that Smiths killing was motivated by a bias against gays. UPDATE 3:40 p.m.: Isimemen Etute the suspended Virginia Tech football player facing a murder charge after the death of a Blacksburg man in May was in a Montgomery County court on Tuesday afternoon. 'Don't target or lure anyone under that perception. In an email earlier this year to the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of HB 2132, Carsten Andresen, a Texas criminal justice professor, said there have been at least eight cases in Virginia in which defense attorneys used gay and trans panic arguments. One of the focal points of the case was the defenses pretrial motion to use a Gay/Trans Panic Defense, which they filed earlier this month. Facebook gives people the. In the courtroom, defense attorney Jimmy Turk of Radford said that Smith had solicited Etute for sex. Smith was discovered dead the following day after his family requested a welfare check. Virginia Tech freshman football player Isimemen Etute was arrested and charged with second-degree murder Wednesday. BLACKSBURG, Va. (WDBJ) - A man found dead in Blacksburg this week died of blunt force injuries to the head, according to the Roanoke Medical Examiner's Office. Jerry Paul Smith of Blacksburg, Va., was beaten to death May 31. Laurence Hammack covers environmental issues, including the Mountain Valley Pipeline, and business and enterprise stories. Brian McGinn, a spokesman for the Roanoke-based U.S. attorneys office, declined to comment when asked about the case Thursday. I was just in shock, in disbelief that someone tricked me and lied to me.. On Friday, Radford lawyer Jimmy Turk said he is now representing Ismemen David Etute, 18, a Virginia Tech freshman charged with killing Smith. I feel like Ive let a lot of people down. 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! The prosecution maintained it was a straightforward case to the jury throughout the trial with crime scene photos jurors saw multiple photos of Smiths dead body lying at the foot of his bed including close ups of his bloody face as well as details from Smiths autopsy that highlighted what a one-sided assault it was. Visit the Wedding Registry, Virginia Tech freshman linebacker, 18, charged with second-degree murder in beating death of Tinder date, after they had oral sex and the teen later discovered his partner was a man, 40, posing as a woman named Angie Ko. Prince Harry boasts about finding 'freedom and happiness' and jokes about reincarnation in unseen TV Behind-the-scenes at fashion week with the Spencers! I felt violated, Etute said, of discovering Smiths identity. (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via The Associated Press) Etute had entered Virginia Tech at midterm and participated in training with the football team. 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Earlier this year, the Virginia House and Senate approved a bill that bans what is sometimes called the gay panic or LGBTQ panic defense. Smith was left bubbling and gurgling on the floor of his home, according to what Etute told police, Morgan said. Jerry Paul Smith, 40 known as Gigi by his nephews of Blacksburg, VA departed this life, June 1, 2021, at his home. Born May 18, 1981, in Montgomery County, VA, he was the son of the late Jerry Wayne Smith and Sandra Cumbee Smith. 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 doesn't matter if you're mad. Isimemen Etute, 19, stands accused of the 2021 murder of Jerry Paul Smith, 40, who Etute met under the name "Angie." (Smith's family has identified the victim . Smiths apartment along with Jalen Hampton on May 31 'do n't target or lure under. 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