Jakim Smith, 26, was fatally shot on May 26, 2020, outside the Town and Country Inn Suites on Reservation Drive in Spindale, North Carolina. Officers and EMS found him with a gunshot wound around 7:30 p.m.; he was taken to Rutherford Regional Hospital and died shortly after arrival. Prosecutors say the shooting followed an altercation between Smith and Douglas Emanuel Montgomery, and that multiple witnesses saw part of the confrontation.

Surveillance video from the motel reportedly showed Montgomery getting into a blue Kia Soul and leaving the scene; he was identified as a suspect and later taken into custody. Maurice Reginal Williams was also wanted in connection with the shooting. Three others were charged in relation to the case: Andre Rashod Mills faced charges of possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of a stolen firearm, while Alicia Danielle Earley and Kristina Lee Rausch were charged with accessory after the fact. The Spindale Police Department and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation handled the inquiry. The victim’s family has said they may pursue claims related to the motel’s security.

Were there witnesses who saw the shooting or the moments just before it who can help clarify what happened?