No murder charge for suspect in death blamed on panhandler

BALTIMORE – The attorney for a woman accused in a killing that was initially blamed on a panhandler says prosecutors are dropping murder charges against her.

The Baltimore Sun reports attorney Brandon Mead says 28-year-old Valeria Smith has been indicted in Baltimore Circuit Court on one charge of accessory after the crime.

A spokeswoman for the Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office declined to discuss the charges.

Smith and her father, 53-year-old Keith Smith, were charged in March in the December killing of her stepmother 54-year-old Jacquelyn Smith, a mechanical engineer at Aberdeen Proving Ground.

The killing attracted national attention after the two suspects claimed Jacquelyn Smith was stabbed after she gave a panhandler $10 while the family was driving through East Baltimore.

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Information from: The Baltimore Sun, http://www.baltimoresun.com