Category: Spotsylvania County

Update: Teenager Kills Sister, Attacks Toddler in Spotsylvania County

From the Richmond Times-Dispatch: Boy’s state of mind is at issue:

A teen charged with raping and killing his sister may have been under the influence of marijuana during or after the crime, his defense attorney suggested in court yesterday.

Also in court, the boy’s mother suggested her son is insane and needs help.

A judge granted a request by Walter L. Smith Jr.’s defense lawyer to take a blood sample from Smith, 16, charged in the Labor Day slaying of his sister Betsy Mary Smith, 22, to determine whether the boy had drugs in his system.

The teen’s lawyer, Kristie Kane, said the blood analysis could provide evidence that might help Smith’s case, though she would not say how. Spotsylvania County Commonwealth’s Attorney William F. Neely said the results, which also would show any medications the teen had taken, could affect how Smith’s statements to police are weighed in court.

Smith made an initial appearance yesterday in Spotsylvania Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. Judge Joseph J. Ellis set a Nov. 27 hearing to determine whether the case would be transferred to Spotsylvania Circuit Court, where Smith would be tried as an adult.

[…]

Walter L. Smith Jr. is charged with first-degree murder and rape in the death of his sister. Prosecutors yesterday also upgraded to aggravated malicious wounding a charge involving Smith’s alleged beating of his 2-year-old niece, who remains hospitalized.

He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted.

Prosecutors gave this account of what happened:

Smith attacked his sister with a sledgehammer and raped her Monday morning, in addition to hitting the toddler with the sledgehammer. The teen then locked the two victims and a 1-year-old relative in his sister’s bedroom in the dilapidated home along Brock Road in central Spotsylvania. The sister kept a padlock on the outside of her door.

At some point, relatives in the home asked about the two young children, and Smith let them out of the room and then locked it again. A relative took the girl to Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg, where it was determined the child had a fractured skull.

A detective went to the home about 8 p.m. Smith’s father gained access to the bedroom and they found the sister dead inside. Neely said she is believed to have been dead about 20 hours by then.

Smith then tried to commit suicide by jumping off a roof, authorities said. He initially told investigators that he killed his sister because she injured the toddler, Neely said, but then he changed his account.

In court yesterday, the judge cited the “heinous” nature of the allegations in deciding that Smith should remain in juvenile detention.

Neely said he believes county social services officials had opened an investigation involving some household members before the slaying. The parents apparently were sleeping at the time and later thought the older sister was away, Neely said, adding he does not expect to bring charges against the parents.

Teenager Kills Sister, Attacks Toddler in Spotsylvania County

From WUSA 9 in Washington, D.C.: Teenager Kills Sister, Attacks Toddler:

A Spotsylvania County teenager is charged with raping and killing his older sister and attacking his two-year-old cousin.

Sheriff Howard Smith says the 16-year-old boy told deputies that he went to his sister’s bedroom early Monday and hit her with a sledgehammer.

Smith says the victim — 22-year-old Betsy Mary Smith — was baby-sitting her two cousins — a two-year-old girl and a one-year-old boy.

Smith says the teenager — whose name has not been released — told deputies that the little girl began crying and he hit her with the sledgehammer, then raped his older sister and locked the two children in the bedroom with her.

She was found dead there last night. Police say she’d been stabbed and beaten with a sledgehammer. The little girl suffered a
fractured skull and a broken nose. The one-year-old was not injured.

The sheriff says investigators have not determined a motive.

The boy is charged with first degree murder, rape and malicious wounding. He’s being held in the Rappahannock Juvenile Detention Center.

From NBC 4 in Washington, D.C.: Woman Dead, Child Injured In Sledgehammer Attack:

Police have charged a teen boy in a sledgehammer attack that left his sister dead and a child injured.

Deputies on Monday were investigating a possible child abuse case at a home in the 8200 block of Brock Road. They were trying to figure out how a 2-year-old girl suffered a fractured nose and skull. The girl’s mother took her to a hospital after discovering she was bleeding, News4‘s Pat Collins reported.

A detective was searching the home when he found a padlock on a bedroom door. A hammer was used to break the lock. Upon entering, the detective found 22-year-old Betsy Mary Smith dead on the floor.

Smith, who lived at the home, had been stabbed and beaten with a sledgehammer.

Police said Smith’s 16-year-old brother told a detective that he went into the bedroom to kill his sister and beat her with a sledgehammer. Police said the teen then hit the 2-year-old with the sledgehammer because she was crying. He then killed his sister, police said.

Police said the teen then raped his sister, left her on the bedroom floor and locked the door with the 2-year-old girl and a 1-year-old boy inside. Sheriff Howard Smith said the victim was baby-sitting the children, who were her cousins.

Collins reported that the suspect let the children out of the locked room about 12 hours later after they started crying again, which is when her mother noticed she was bleeding. The 1-year-old was not injured.

The teen was charged with first-degree murder, rape and malicious wounding. He’s being held in the Rappahannock Juvenile Detention Center.

Officials at Spotsylvania High School said the suspect was a freshman there. Crisis counselors will be at the school on Wednesday.

The suspect’s parents said he has had problems with depression in the past but isn’t currently on any medication.

The sheriff said investigators have not determined a motive.

UPDATE: From the Richmond Times-Dispatch: Teen charged in sister’s death:

A 16-year-old Spotsylvania County boy who is accused of raping and killing his older sister on Labor Day likely will be tried as an adult, a prosecutor said yesterday.

Walter Smith Jr. is charged with murder and rape in the death of his sister, and malicious wounding in the assault of a 2-year-old relative, Spotsylvania Commonwealth’s Attorney William F. Neely said.

Authorities found the body of Betsy Mary Smith, 22, in a locked bedroom Monday night. “It had a padlock on it,” Neely said.

The teen’s father either unlocked the padlock or somehow broke down the door for a detective, Neely said.

The detective had gone to the house because relatives of the brother and sister had brought a 2-year-old girl to a local hospital with a fractured skull, Neely said.

Smith initially told authorities that he killed his sister because she had hurt the little girl, Neely said, but the teen then gave a statement implicating himself.

Neely said Smith’s sister was attacked with a sledgehammer and then raped before she died.

“She was stabbed, she was smashed in the head with a hammer and she was sexually assaulted,” he said.

Neely said the woman’s body had been in the bedroom of the house in the 8200 block of Brock Road for about 20 hours when authorities responded around 8 p.m. Monday.

Smith had locked the little girl and a small boy in the same room with his sister, Neely said, but had let the two young children out after relatives asked about them.

Neely said Smith tried to commit suicide afterward and is being held without bond in the Rappahannock Juvenile Detention Center.

The teen is scheduled to appear this morning in Spotsylvania Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. He would be tried as an adult if a judge later finds probable cause to certify one or more charges to a grand jury.

Friends Try To Raise Money For 13-Year-Old’s Funeral

From NBC 4 in Washington, D.C.: Friends Try To Raise Money For 13-Year-Old’s Funeral:

Friends of a slain 13-year-old Spotsylvania girl are trying to raise money for her funeral.

Kayla Reynolds was shot in the head and killed while on her front porch in the 11900 block of Belfonte Road early Tuesday morning. Her 19-year-old pregnant stepsister, Amber Barnett, was also shot, police said. She was taken to a local hospital in stable condition.

Kayla’s father, Earl Wayne Reynolds, 44, was arrested in the shooting. He was charged with first-degree murder and use of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

Lewis Hague, a relative, told News4 that Kayla accused Reynolds of using crack, causing him to lose control.

Kayla Reynolds’ friends and neighbors are asking that the public contribute to a memorial fund set up to pay for the 13-year-old’s funeral service and burial costs.

She was a student at Post Oak Middle School. Principal Keith Wolfe said counselors will be available for students to talk to at the school. A banner will be placed in the cafeteria for students to express memories of Kayla.

News4’s Julie Carey reported that the girls’ mother died five years ago.

Earl Reynolds, also known as Butch, was in court on Thursday on unrelated charges, officials said.

He was previously charged with driving while intoxicated and driving without a license, officials said. After being jailed for not showing up to court, officials said Earl Reynolds was released on bond and told to show up to court this Thursday on those charges, officials said.

Memorial Fund Information:
Kayla Reynolds Memorial Fund
SunTrust Bank
5101 Jefferson Davis Highway
Fredericksburg, VA 22407
Contact: Carlos Longo
(540) 899-5623

Two Teens Shot, One Killed In Spotsylvania County

From NBC 4 in Washington, D.C.: Two Teens Shot, One Killed In Spotsylvania County:

The Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office said deputies responded to a double shooting near Lake Anna Tuesday morning.

At about 2 a.m., the sheriff’s office received a report of two teenage girls shot in the 11900 block of Bellefonte Road, authorities said.

Responding deputies said they found a 13-year-old girl dead from apparent gunshot wounds. Her 19-year-old sister was taken to the Medical College of Virginia Hospital in Richmond in serious condition. She had suffered a gunshot wound to the chin, authorities said.

According to the sheriff’s office, the girls apparently were shot by their stepfather.

UPDATE: From the AP via WUSA 9 in Washington, D.C.: Father Charged With Shooting Daughters; One Dead:

Authorities say a Spotsylvania County man is accused of shooting his daughter and his stepdaughter at their home.

The sheriff’s office says deputies found 13-year-old Kayla Reynolds dead on the front porch of the family’s home shortly after 1 a.m. today and her 19-year-old sister was flown to VCU Medical Center in Richmond. Her name was not released, but authorities say she’s in stable condition.

Authorities say the 19-year-old woman met them at the door and said her stepfather had shot her and her stepsister.

Investigators say 44-year-old Earl Wayne Reynolds is charged with first-degree murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. He is jailed on no bond.