A Daytona Beach police officer is out of a job after she was caught lying about being the victim of a drive-by shooting. Officer Michelle Smith opened fire after what she says was a targeted attempt on her life. An internal affairs investigation revealed that she had instigated the argument that led to the incident and that there never was a drive-by shooting. This is yet another case of a bully caught in a lie.
A heavily intoxicated Officer Smith can be heard on a Snapchat video from September, when she recorded a verbal altercation she had with several residents of her apartment complex while she was off duty. Despite her claims that she was aggressively confronted by this group, the video tells another story. A male from the group can be heard saying “She don’t want to fight,” yet Smith continues to instigate the situation, saying, “I’m here, what’s up?” and can later be heard saying that she wanted to “wrap them up.” Police talk for get into a fight. Other witnesses told police that the group was just walking through the complex looking for a set of keys, when they were confronted by Smith.
According to Smith, as the group drove away and out of the area, they opened fire on her, causing her to react by firing several shots in self defense. Little detail has been released about the incident, including what Smith ended up shooting or what she was shooting at, if there was never a drive-by. Investigators stated that Smith lied about the type of car involved, as she was sure they would never find it. The internal affairs report did not indicate any complaining victims, so it is unlikely that the group was in the vicinity when the shots were fired. Smith has been unavailable for comment except to state that “the investigation was not honest or complete.” Upon conclusion of their investigation, authorities stated that Smith violated 2 statutes and violated at least a dozen police policies. They attributed alcohol as a contributing factor, as Smith was intoxicated at the time of the incident.
In typical law enforcement fashion, Smith was allowed to resign from the department, which leaves the door open for her to be hired by another agency. The fact that she was allowed to resign should say more about the integrity of the department than it does about Smith. The State Attorney has received the case and has not yet made a determination as to whether or not they will bring charges. Rest assured, that if Smith didn’t carry a badge, she would be locked up already.
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