On the evening of March 28, 2018, 24-year-old Christopher Smith was shot and killed in the Hickory Ridge area of Memphis after he and a cousin went to look for the cousin’s car, which had been stolen from a southeast Memphis service station. While searching, they became suspicious of a vehicle that had driven past them several times and followed it. That vehicle stopped and turned around on Cognac Cove; three men then exited and opened fire. Smith, who was in the driver’s seat, was struck multiple times and pronounced dead at the scene. His 23-year-old cousin was shot in the leg but escaped and called for help.

Investigators later identified three suspects: Jaelen Bell, Demerrick Porter, and Christian Key, all taken into custody and indicted in November 2018 on second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, and an employment of a firearm charge. In July 2021 a jury convicted Demerrick Porter of second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, and the firearm count; Porter received a 38-year sentence. Jaelen Bell pleaded guilty in March 2022 and received 28 years; Christian Key pleaded guilty in June 2022 and received 20 years.