Harold Smith, the man who shot and killed himself when police came to arrest him has a criminal case pending in which he threatened to kill a man after breaking into his home in 2009.
Smith was arrested and served 30 days in 2009 for marijuana possession and prowling – he failed to appear on a related charge and had an arrest warrant pending from the Manhattan Beach Police Department. He was trying to break into a couple’s home during the incident when the husband confronted Smith who said, according to the wife “I’m going to kill you.”
In any case – the cops screwed up – since now they are saying they think Smith shot himself because he thought he was going to be arrested for several local burglaries and sent back to prison. Does this make sense? Who would shoot themselves if they thought they might do small time in prison for a few burglaries? Not to be insensitive but don’t criminals have an expression that goes something like “if you can’t do the time then don’t do the crime?”
This whole investigation by the Beverley Hills Police has gone nowhere fast. What do they have to show for their efforts? One dead very small-time criminal who they now say is “probably unrelated” to Ronni Chasen’s brutal murder. Is this the best they can do?
