A Hinds County judge declared a mistrial April 9 in the murder trial of Randall Smith, who is accused of fatally shooting his Jackson State University roommate in 2022, The Clarion-Ledger reported.
Hinds County Circuit Court Judge Adrienne Wooten declared the mistrial after a jury deliberated about three hours and 30 minutes and informed the court it could not reach a unanimous verdict. When polled by Wooten, 11 of 12 jurors said further deliberations would not help; at least three jurors said they were willing to continue the next day.
Smith, 20 at the time of the Dec. 2, 2022, killing, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 22-year-old Flynn Brown on Jackson State’s campus. The two were suitemates on the seventh floor of the John W. Dixon Residence Hall. After the ruling, Smith was returned to the Hinds County jail while prosecutors decide whether to seek a new trial.
Jurors who spoke to media after the mistrial said all 12 believed Smith was guilty but disagreed on whether the offense amounted to first-degree murder or a lesser charge. Wooten told the court, “Based off of what has taken place here on tonight, the court is going to grant a mistrial.” The comment was reported by Pam Dankins of The Clarion-Ledger.
Family members of the victim vowed to continue pursuing justice. Flynn Brown’s mother, Michele Hill-Brown, said, “We will get justice for Flynn,” and his father, Michael Brown, said he is frustrated with the outcome. Defense attorney Kevin Dale Camp said his client was disappointed and that they would “T-up and do it again.” Camp said the family wanted closure that the verdict did not provide.
During the trial jurors heard a recording in which Smith described a struggle over doughnuts, said Brown choked him, and said he retrieved a gun from a drawer and fatally shot Brown. In the recording, Smith acknowledged moving Brown’s body into a storage box and then into Brown’s Dodge Challenger and said he cleaned the area with bleach, saying the killing was in self-defense. Hinds County Assistant District Attorney Briana Keeler urged jurors to focus on evidence and called any cleaning an attempt to cover up the crime, saying, “Bleach is certainly not the smell of self-defense.” The defense said the actions were consistent with a person who believed they had acted in self-defense.
Prosecutors will decide whether to retry the case. The Clarion-Ledger’s Pam Dankins reported on the proceeding. This is a developing story and will be updated as more details emerge.
