County attorney: Video evidence doesn’t warrant charges for officers who shot Winston Smith

Newly uncovered video of the 2021 law enforcement shooting that killed Winston Smith “does not change the conclusion” that officers used justified force and should not be charged, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced Friday.

On June 3, 2021, a U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force sought to arrest Smith — who was wanted for a firearm offense — and cornered his vehicle in a Minneapolis parking ramp. The attempted arrest turned into a shootout, killing Smith.

The Crow Wing County Attorney’s Office first considered the case in 2021 and determined no charges were warranted. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office reviewed the case again when the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension accessed a video Smith recorded of the incident.

“All available evidence suggests the officers followed the U.S. Marshal’s policies and their training to secure the apprehension of a wanted individual. Their conduct was legal,” Moriarty said in a statement.

BCA agents first accessed Smith’s cellphone in November after a year of attempting to unlock the phone, testing more than 780,000 password combinations. The agency publicly released a redacted version of the video on Friday.

At the start of the video, a woman can be heard inside the car pleading for Smith to give himself up to law enforcement.

“Winston, please let them take you. Like, what the f—,” she cries. “Open the door, Winston. Babe, please open the door.”

Smith appears distraught and says twice, “Just shoot.”

While the footage does not show the officers who shot Smith, it does capture the sound of officers chipping through the windows Smith’s vehicle. After the glass shatters, Smith is seen grabbing a handgun from the center console and pointing it toward the officers. The rest of the video is redacted, but Moriarty said it shows Smith shooting first before officers returned fire.

The BCA said the task force members who fired at Smith were deputies from Hennepin and Ramsey counties.

In a statement, Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt was hopeful the video’s release would provide “closure” for everyone involved.

“Every death is a tragedy and our hearts are with Mr. Smith’s family and friends as they grieve. As the video confirms, the task force members were in a situation where their lives, as well as the lives of others, were at risk,” Witt said. “For law enforcement officers involved in incidents where they must use deadly force, the mental and emotional toll often have lasting impacts. Now that this video is released and the case is closed, we are hopeful everyone involved can find closure.”

Consistent with U.S. Marshals Service policy at the time, none of the task force members were wearing body cameras, and up until recently investigators believed there was no video evidence of the shooting. Moriarty said the USMS has since increased the use of bodycams.