Driver with flat tire kills officer who stopped to help, feds say. ‘Cold blooded’

A New Mexico State Police officer was shot to death by a man he stopped to help on the side of the road, according to federal prosecutors.

Jaremy Smith, a 33-year-old South Carolina resident, is facing federal charges in relation to Officer Justin Hare’s death on March 15, prosecutors announced in a March 22 news release.

“The last words that Officer Hare uttered on this earth was an offer to help the man who was about to kill him,” New Mexico State Police Chief Troy Weisler said in a video on March 16.

McClatchy News contacted a federal public defender appointed to represent Smith for comment March 25 and didn’t receive an immediate response

Hare, a 35-year-old father of two girls who has another baby due in September, “was known for his kindness and consideration for those who travel New Mexico’s long roads,” state Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández said while honoring him on March 19.

He “lent a helping hand to whoever needed it,” she added.

What happened?

On March 15, Hare was dispatched to a driver reported to be waving down other drivers at 4:47 a.m. on Interstate 40 in Quay County, according to court documents.

When Hare arrived, he found Smith with a flat tire, according to Weisler.

Hare stayed in his patrol car as Smith got out of a white BMW and walked up to his passenger window, prosecutors said.

He spoke to Smith about his flat tire and offered to give him a ride to town, according to court documents. Then, Hare asked Smith to walk to the front of his patrol car.

“Without warning, the suspect pulled out a firearm and shot Officer Hare,” Weisler said March 16, before Smith was apprehended.

Hare slumped in his driver’s seat, and Smith walked to his window and shot him twice, prosecutors said.

Then, Smith stole Hare’s patrol car and drove off with him inside, according to prosecutors.

Officers who were alerted to the patrol car’s distress system found the vehicle abandoned along I-40, prosecutors said.

Hare had been shot in his head and neck, according to prosecutors, who said he died of his injuries at a hospital.

The New Mexico State Police officer who found Hare was joined by a Quay County deputy who arrived to provide aid, New Mexico Department of Public Safety Secretary Jason Bowie said at a March 16 New Mexico State Police news conference.

“Justin would have died out there alone,” but he had “his fellow brothers of law enforcement there to help him,” Bowie said.

Smith is captured

On March 17, Smith was at a gas station in Albuquerque and handed his ID card to a store clerk, who called authorities after recognizing his name, according to an affidavit.

Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office deputies and state police officers found Smith, who’s accused of trying to flee, according to prosecutors.

Deputies fired at Smith as he “reached for his waistband,” prosecutors said.

He was apprehended and provided with medical care after he was hit by gunfire, according to prosecutors.

The charges

On March 22, Smith, of Marion, South Carolina, appeared in federal court in Albuquerque, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico.

He is charged with carjacking resulting in death and discharge of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, the attorney’s office said.

Smith’s criminal history is extensive and includes 13 arrests in Georgia and South Carolina, according to his affidavit.

His offenses in those states involve: “taking of a hostage by an inmate, attempted armed robbery, a parole revocation, giving false information to law enforcement, receiving stolen goods valued at $5,000 or more, burglary, and grand larceny,” the affidavit says.

‘Person of interest’ in another death

The white BMW Smith was driving when Hare found him the morning of March 15 belonged to a missing South Carolina woman, according to the affidavit.

The evening of March 15, she was found dead with a “possible gunshot wound to the head,” the affidavit says.

Now, Smith is a “person of interest” in Phonesia Miranda Machado-Fore’s death, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina said March 17 on Facebook.

The 52-year-old’s body was discovered in Dillon County, according to the Dillon County coroner, WMBF-TV reported.

“At this time, Marion County Sheriff’s Office has no charges on Jaremy Smith. Therefore, he will remain in the custody of New Mexico State Police to face charges in the murder of New Mexico State Police Officer Justin Hare,” the sheriff’s office said.

Remembering Officer Hare

Hare, of Logan, is survived by his father, mother, Daizzare Quintana, “the love of his life,” his brother, nieces and nephews, according to his obituary, which says he had an older brother, JC Hare, who died before him.

“Justin’s commitment to his family was unwavering; he was known as the best family man and an exceptional daddy,” his obituary says.

In speaking with KVII-TV about Hare, Quintana told the outlet: “It’s so hard to put his life and who he was into paragraphs because he was indescribable.”

“We know JC was waiting for him, and that brings some comfort,” Quintana said.

Hare was a New Mexico State Police officer for five years and was the treasurer of the New Mexico State Police Association, according to his obituary.

“Justin’s passion for helping others extended beyond his career; he found joy in coaching soccer and engaging in various outreach programs,” his obituary says.

Hare’s funeral will be held at 11 a.m. March 27 at Legacy Church in Albuquerque.

Possible life in prison or death sentence

If Smith is convicted on the charge of carjacking resulting in death, he could face up to life in prison or death, according to prosecutors.

For the charge of discharge of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, Smith would face a mandatory minimum of ten years in prison if he’s convicted, prosecutors said.

“I am disgusted and I am sickened by the actions of this cold blooded murderer,” Weisler said March 16.

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