Former Knox Co. Judge Executive shoots three; turns gun on self

 Why? It?s a question investigators are still trying to figure out after a former Knox County Judge-Executive shot three people in Bell County Tuesday morning, and then apparently turned the gun on himself a short time later in the cemetery where his parents are buried.

So far there are more questions than answers.

What authorities do know is that Raymond Curtis Smith, 51, who served as Knox County Judge-Executive from 2003-2006, went to a residence on Laurel Lakes Road just outside of Pineville about 9:42 a.m. Tuesday.

When Kentucky State Police troopers from the Harlan post arrived there later to investigate a report of a triple shooting, they found Michael Smith, 50, and his son, Mychael Dustin Smith, 21, dead. Michael Smith?s daughter, Robin Smith, 21, also suffered a gunshot wound. Raymond Smith was the apparent gunman.

Robin Smith was apparently alert and speaking when emergency workers arrived. She was airlifted to the University of Tennessee Medical Center for treatment, but her current condition is unknown.

A spokesperson for the University of Tennessee Medical Center said there was no information to release about Smith.

Kentucky State Police Trooper Shane Jacobs, public affairs officer at the Harlan Post, said that the preliminary investigation indicates that Raymond Smith of Evergreen Road in Flat Lick, left the residence after the shooting and was later found in Hammonds Fork Cemetery with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Relatives apparently found Raymond Smith with a gunshot wound at his parent?s grave.

Knox County coroner Mike Blevins confirmed that Smith was pronounced dead of a gunshot wound shortly after 10 a.m. at Knox County Hospital.

Jacobs told the media that the connection between Smith and the victims is unclear.

"We are still looking at why he was here in Bell County and why he went to the cemetery," Jacobs said, adding that because the incident involved two crimes scenes in two counties, they are still trying to determine a motive.

So far authorities haven?t elaborated on whether the victims, whose last names were Smith, and the former judge-executive were related.

The bodies of Michael Smith and Mychael Dustin Smith have been sent to State Medical Examiner?s office in Frankfort for an autopsy.

KSP Detective Mark Mefford is still investigating the case.

Knox County Clerk Mike Corey said he worked with Smith while he served as judge-executive.

"He was elected in 2002 and took office in 2003," Corey said, adding that news of the incident came as a shock.

"This is a tragedy for Knox County and our neighboring county of Bell," Corey said. "My heart goes out to all the families who are involved," he said.

No stranger to controversy

Smith was no stranger to controversy.

A search of local court records shows that Smith had a history of alleged violent incidents.

In January 2005, Smith was arrested for allegedly assaulting an employee of a Williamsburg loan company when the employee tried to re-possess a piece of construction equipment. In July 2005, Smith entered an Alford Plea in Whitley District Court, adding that he entered the plea on the advice of his counsel Warren Scoville.

In early May 2005, Smith was charged with fourth-degree assault and terroristic threatening for allegedly assaulting one of his employees.

However, those charges were later dropped at the request of the victim.

In both cases, Smith denied the allegations against him.

Smith lost a bid for re-election in 2006 as judge-executive.

His administration came under fire from former Kentucky State Auditor Crit Luallen when a three-year audit in early 2006 revealed a total of 63 questionable findings.

In March 2008, he pleaded guilty to mail fraud in federal court and a federal judge sentenced him later that year to 2.5 years in prison and ordered him to pay $110,000 in restitution.

Between May 1, 2003 and May 1, 2006, while Raymond Smith was in office as judge executive, federal prosecutors say he caused bidding documents to be created that falsely indicated that certain businesses, including Grade All Construction, Partin Construction, Marion Trucking and Kentucky Phoenix, had made certain bids or offers regarding public road, water or construction projects in Knox County. Raymond Smith then presented those documents to the Knox County Fiscal Court as if the firms had actually bid on the projects.

Instead of giving contracts to the firms that had supposedly made the bids, the projects were performed by firms owned by Raymond Smith and/or his brother, Henry Smith or their family members, including BKW, Total Timber and Total Freight, when those firms had not bid on the projects and had not been approved by the fiscal court to do the work.

An investigation of the work began after a state audit found $2.7 million in county expenditures that were questionable. When Raymond Smith lost his reelection bid in May of 2006 to current Judge Executive J.M. Hall, the FBI confiscated boxes that contained documents from the county office related to the bids.