Former Laurel County Constable Bobby Joe Smith was convicted of reckless homicide after shooting and killing 30-year-old Brandon Stanley inside a convenience store in East Bernstadt, Kentucky.
The shooting happened on March 4, 2016, at the A & B Quick Stop. Smith, an elected Laurel County constable, had received information that Stanley was inside the store and went there to serve outstanding warrants.
According to Louisville Public Media and the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting, surveillance footage showed Smith entering the store, drawing his gun, and positioning himself near the cash register. As Stanley moved slowly down an aisle toward him with his hands raised, Smith fired two shots.
Stanley was unarmed. He fell to the floor and died almost instantly. LPM reported that he was killed less than 24 hours before his planned wedding.
The encounter followed an earlier attempted arrest. WKYT reported that Smith had stopped Stanley several days before the shooting, but Stanley gave a false name and ran. Stanley’s fiancée testified that Smith had been calling and texting while looking for him.
At trial, prosecutors argued that the shooting was not self-defense. WYMT reported that prosecutors said Stanley never touched Smith during the attempted arrest and that store surveillance video was shown to jurors.
Smith testified in his own defense. He said he was scared for his life and claimed Stanley appeared to have something in his hands as he raised his arms. The jury rejected a full acquittal but also declined to convict him of manslaughter.
On March 15, 2017, a Laurel County jury found Smith guilty of reckless homicide. WKYT reported that jurors recommended a one-year sentence. Smith had originally been indicted for manslaughter, but the jury convicted him of the lesser offense.
The case also exposed major problems with Kentucky’s constable system. WAVE and KyCIR reported that Smith had been a constable for only 15 months, had no state-approved law enforcement training, and mainly worked at a motorcycle dealership.
Unlike certified Kentucky police officers, elected constables can carry badges and exercise law enforcement powers without completing the same academy training required of regular officers. The shooting of Brandon Stanley became one of the clearest examples of the danger created when an armed elected official with little or no formal training tries to operate like a police officer.
Stanley’s estate later filed a federal civil rights and wrongful death lawsuit against Smith and others. In a 2019 opinion, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky wrote that the case involved “a constable that ignored the peace aspect of being a peace officer.” The court noted that Stanley was shot to death in the front aisle of the crowded A&B Market and that Smith had been convicted of felony reckless homicide.
The court also emphasized the larger structural problem: Kentucky constables are considered peace officers under state law, but they are not required to complete the certification and training mandated for most other Kentucky law enforcement officers.
Brandon Stanley had a warrant and had previously run from Smith. None of that made him a death sentence. He was unarmed, inside a store, with his hands raised when Bobby Joe Smith fired. A jury found Smith criminally responsible, but the conviction was for reckless homicide rather than manslaughter.
