Oxygen is re-airing the Snapped investigation into the murder of Michael Lee Smith by his wife, Rebecca Maureen Smith, at their home in Berkley, a suburb of Detroit, Michigan.
In December 2002, a member of the public was collecting discarded cans along the side of the road in Springfield Township, north of Detroit, when they came across the remains of Michael. He had been shot twice in the torso.
The remains were found lying in the fetal position in a ditch. He was wearing a Detroit Tigers t-shirt and a wedding band but nothing else. The unidentified body had a distinctive grim reaper tattoo, which the police made public in the hope of getting an ID for the remains.
Rebecca Smith came forward after seeing an image of the tattoo. She told the cops she had last seen her husband ten days previously when she dropped him off at a bus station.
She claimed he was traveling to a rehab facility in Florida to take part in an 18-month treatment for alcoholism.
However, investigators became suspicious when they found Michael’s blood between the floorboards of a closet in their home.
Evidence mounted against Rebecca Smith in Michael Smith murder case
A friend of Rebecca’s told the cops that she had asked them in November 2002 if they could borrow a gun. Rebecca allegedly told them that she wanted to kill Michael and later said to them that she wished her husband would either “go away or die.”
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelIt took four years to gather the evidence and arrest Rebecca. During her first arraignment in 2007, the killer sobbed as she claimed she was innocent. The mother of two children under 10 told reporters, “I didn’t do it…I just want to go home to my boys. I didn’t do this. I’m not going anywhere. I just want to go home to my boys.”
During her trial, Rebecca had her sister and a friend send a fake anonymous letter to the court written by someone supposedly claiming to be the real murderer. The ruse failed, and the killer was convicted of second-degree murder.
Rebecca Smith sentenced to up to 60 years for killing Michael Smith
Oakland County Circuit Judge Colleen O’Brien exceeded the sentencing guidelines by giving Rebecca 30 to 60 years behind bars. Judge O’Brien said that Rebecca’s actions after the murder had led to the harsher sentence.
Rebecca successfully appealed against her sentence and had it reduced slightly from 25 to 60 years. She is currently incarcerated at the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti, MI.
This episode of Snapped re-airs at 7/6c on Oxygen.