On the evening of December 3, 1998, 43-year-old Gary Lamont Smith was shot and killed in Portland, Oregon. Police stopped a 1998 teal green Hyundai Accent on Northeast Shaver Street near Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard after reports of erratic driving; officers found Smith inside, bleeding heavily. He died of a gunshot wound before paramedics arrived.

Witnesses said Smith had been in conversation with another man on Northeast Shaver Street when that man fired multiple shots into Smith’s car, then fled southbound. The shooter was described as an African-American man about 18 to 25 years old, 5 feet 8 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall, with a slender build. Investigators noted Smith’s regular use of crack cocaine and reports that he sometimes stole from others for drugs or money, a detail mentioned in connection with the case.

The homicide remains an open cold case with the Portland Police Homicide Unit; no arrests have been announced. If anyone has information about the shooting or recognizes the suspect description, please come forward.