Byron Smith, Minn. man, arrested for murder of two teens on Thanksgiving day, police say

By: Crimesider Staff
Topics: Daily Blotter

Byron Smith

/ Morrison County Sheriff's Office

(CBS/AP) LITTLE FALLS, Minn. - Byron Smith, a 64-year-old man, will be arraigned on Monday after police say they found the bodies of two teenage cousins who went missing on Thanksgiving Day in the basement of his central Minnesota home.

PICTURES: Two Minn. cousins fatally shot on Thanksgiving Day

Little Falls school officials identified the victims as 18-year-old Haile Kifer and her 17-year-old cousin, Nicholas Brady. Smith reportedly told police he fatally shot the teenagers during a break-in, but authorities said his actions exceeded reasonable self-defense.

Police said Smith was held in custody on Sunday, and they expect he will be charged with second-degree murder on Monday.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported that about 200 people gathered Sunday night for a vigil at Little Falls High School for Kifer and Brady. Mourners remembered both as athletic and friendly.

Morrison County deputies visited Smith's home Friday afternoon on a suspicious activity call. They said he immediately confessed to shooting two people the previous day around noon. Deputies found the bodies in the basement.

The suspect's brother, Bruce Smith, told the Tribune that several break-ins left his brother feeling vulnerable and afraid, and that the shootings made him upset and unsure how to react.

"Put yourself in his shoes after you shoot two people in your basement," Bruce Smith told the newspaper Sunday. "How are you going to react?"

Morrison County Sheriff Michel Wetzel said Byron Smith claimed the teenagers broke into his home. But Wetzel said circumstances at the scene led investigators, including some from the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, to believe that his actions were in excess of simple self-defense.

Kifer was a senior at Little Falls High School. Superintendent Stephen Jones said she competed in gymnastics and swimming and helped manage the boys' wrestling team. Brady attended the same school and later transferred to nearby Pillager High School.

Jones said grief counselors will be on hand Monday even though students have a scheduled day off. Students and their parents will be invited to come to school and talk about what happened. He said more counselors will be in place on Tuesday when all students return; Pillager High School also planned to have counselors available.

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Two Minn. cousins fatally shot on Thanksgiving Day

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by marissa1256 November 27, 2012 11:13 PM EST: "Put yourself in his shoes after you shoot two people in your basement. How are you going to react?" he said during an interview at the house...... Uh I would probably call the police and say "oh my God, 2 people just broke into my house and I shot them, help!" I certainly wouldn't let 2 dead bodies sit in my basement for 24 hours! There MUST be more to this story. These teens don't appear to have been criminals/gang members. If they did really break into this guy's house, the sight of the gun or a warning shot probably would have ben sufficient to scare them away. No need to shoot them multiple times (as one of them was lying on the floor gasping for air). He meant to kill them, not just defend himself. I really have my doubts about this man's mental stability and about whether or not this was an actual break in. For all we know he's one of those crazies who advertised selling his TV on Craig's list to lure someone to his house and shoot them for fun.; Reply to this comment


by HyperboleJoe November 27, 2012 11:13 PM EST: For those of you defending this guy without more of the story, read this:
http://brainerddispatch.com/news/2012-11-26/little-falls-shooting-smith-charged-two-counts-second-degree-murder
and if you're still willing to say the kids got what they deserved, then you are deranged.; Reply to this comment


by SLeigh-what November 27, 2012 4:18 PM EST: if it were two older black guys...it would not have even made to news!; Reply to this comment


by desi_lisle November 27, 2012 10:32 AM EST: Teenagers repeatedly terrorize an aging, sick old man by breaking into his home, using a pipe (which could easily be used as a deadly weapon), and he FINALLY defends himself and now it's "oh, they were just kids". Well, they weren't ACTING like "just kids", were they? Don't look at the photos and say "oh, how pretty she was" or "how cute he was" and whine about this; criminals who are young and attractive are as dangerous as the ones who look sleazy or ugly. Ted Bundy, one of the worst serial killers on record, was a quite handsome guy, which just helped him in his killing spree. Older people are increasingly becoming "fair game" to young criminals like this, often BECAUSE we're older and use medications that junkies like these two don't want to pay for on the street. WE HAVE A RIGHT TO DEFEND OUR HOMES AND OURSELVES. I'm disgusted by people who casually dismiss the crimes of teenagers as if they were toddlers on a playground. This man was desperate, he was in his own home and wasn't safe from these CRIMINALS. I'm not surprised he panicked and waited to call someone, particularly if he is on medications and may have been very distressed and confused by the entire mess. I'm over 60 now, and if someone broke into my home and I felt threatened, I would defend myself too. What were the families of these two doing about their behavior? Their drug addiction? Their attitude of "hey, we can do what we wanna do, we don't give a **** about anyone else, 'cause we're kewl"??? I don't care how popular they were, they were criminals who thought they were ENTITLED to terrorize a sick old man who finally just had enough of it. My father, who was a pilot, had a saying about young pilots who killed themselves by being hotshots: "Dumb is self-correcting." Well, dumb got these two dead because they assumed the old man was defenseless; they assumed they were entitled to FORCE THEIR WAY INTO HIS HOME and take what they wanted and just walk out. They were wrong. I sincerely hope Bryan Smith is allowed to go home and that all charges are dropped.; Reply to this comment


by potsynolls November 27, 2012 8:21 AM EST: The system is boxing us in meaning that, yeah, you can own a gun, carry a gun, but be sure not to use it in a way that ensures that your life is preserved. This is just another process of the pussification of this country. If the cousins were anything other than good looking white kids the shooting would be justified and we wouldn't even be hearing about it.; Reply to this comment

by CitySoap November 27, 2012 2:26 AM EST

There is nothing I own that is worth taking another person's life over.

Reply to this comment


by potsynolls November 27, 2012 8:13 AM EST: Not even your life? So you're able to predict an intruder's intentions? I think that you are fooled by the pictures of the two cousins as they do not show the "usual suspects".


by desi_lisle November 27, 2012 10:35 AM EST: How about your own life? Older people are beaten and robbed in their own homes every single day in this country, and many of them don't survive it.


by BrentCarter November 27, 2012 1:19 AM EST: The police havent really investigated yet.
Time and more info will tell what really happened. Theres a
dozen possiblities here.

I dont belive the old man at all. Did he entice these kids there?
Was it a break -in? What was his relationship ? Their history.
Theres many many questions. This is not over.
Its not even started.; Reply to this comment


by jesslf November 27, 2012 12:36 AM EST: prayers to all of the families involved!; Reply to this comment


by urcarcass November 27, 2012 12:33 AM EST: Why should this man even be questioned about what he did? Because these were two popular teenagers? NO! This man had every right to shoot two invaders!!!; Reply to this comment


by rsmik November 27, 2012 12:28 AM EST: So why were these wonderful upstanding teenagers breaking into an old man's home on Thanksgiving?; Reply to this comment