Mistrial declared after jury deadlocks on murder charge against Wallace Smith III
LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Wallace Smith III's fate hinged Wednesday on whether jurors believed Smith's life was in danger when he fired 16 shots into George Derment Jr.'s car, killing Derment, early Sept. 23, 2023.
Some jurors wanted to convict Smith, 43, of murder, while others wanted to acquit him based on Smith's claims of self defense.
About 3 p.m. Wednesday — after three hours of deliberation — the jury sent a note to the court, leading many to believe they had reached a verdict. They hadn't.
The jury foreman declared they were a hung jury. Tippecanoe Superior 2 Judge Steve Meyer asked the jury to go back and discuss if the deadlock could be broken.
It couldn't, leaving Meyer to declare a mistrial.
A hearing is scheduled for Friday morning to determine the next step in Smith's case.
Earlier in the morning, Smith testified, telling how Derment pulled up beside his car as he was parking near his house in the 1100 block of North 12th Street. The two had words, and Derment threatened Smith's life, according to Smith's testimony.
Derment then sped north to the nearest stop sign to allow another motorist to pass since he was blocking the street. Derment turned around, speeding south back to Smith's car.
When Derment stopped his car beside Smith's BMW, Smith opened fire, emptying all 16 bullets from his pistol's magazine into Derment and his car. Multiple bullets struck Derment, killing him as he sat in his idling Nissan car.
"Wallace reasonable believed when George turned his car around that (Derment) was going to follow through on his threats," Smith's attorney, Rob Little, said in closing arguments late Wednesday morning. "Wallace believed he's going to be shot.
"He fired those shots in fear for his life — reasonable fear for his life," Little said.
In closing arguments, Tippecanoe County Deputy Prosecutor Cassidy Laux said Smith's fear of Derment was not reasonable and didn't not raise to the level of killing another person.
"Mere words do not get you to self-defense level of deadly force," Laux said.
Smith faces 45 to 65 years in prison if he's convicted of murder, and he faces an additional 20 years in prison if he's convicted of the sentence-enhancing charge of using a firearm in the commission of a crime.
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Lafayette murder suspect's jury deadlocked; mistrial declared
