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One of the youngest defendants featured in Breaking Bond Series charged with murder
FOX 26 Reporter Randy Wallace has more in our ongoing series, Breaking Bond.
HOUSTON - We are now up to 150 Harris County residents who lost their lives because of the revolving door at the criminal district courthouse. Two-thirds of those killings happened in 2020 and this year.
"For someone who just technically became an adult in the legal sense has been a very, very busy guy," said Andy Kahan with Crime Stoppers.
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According to his criminal history, 18-year-old Richard Smith was busy allegedly robbing and shooting people.
"He’s on bond in less than a year for at least five charges, all of them violent related," Kahan said.
While on juvenile probation, Smith was charged with aggravated robbery in January of last year. 262nd Criminal District Judge Lori Chambers Gray grants him a $5,000 bond.
As Smith keeps picking up more violent criminal charges, Judge Gray keeps granting him bond. Then his alleged crime spree turned deadly on January 3.
"He went on this shooting spree from Hell," Kahan said.
Within about a 90 minute period, police say Smith shot and wounded a man during a vehicle crash.
An hour later, he’s accused of shooting another man in the 7100 block of Knox Street.
30 minutes later, police say Smith shot three men at 8015 Depriest Street.
53-year-old Daniel Hosea later died at the hospital.
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"When you look at it, I guess you might say we’re lucky three people weren’t killed by him," said Kahan.
We know of 10 defendants Judge Lori Chambers Gray granted multiple bonds to who went on to become murder suspects, like Richard Smith.
Last February, we told you about 21-year-old Raul Alexander Leon. He’s accused of murdering 17-year-old Raul Zarco.
RELATED: Breaking Bond: Two families blame same judge for the recent slayings of their loved ones
Zarco’s relatives blame Judge Gray. This relative asked not to be identified because Judge Gray gave Leon yet another bond for the murder charge.
"Maybe if she would put herself in someone else’s shoes, that lost somebody who had a whole life in front of them, maybe she would think differently," she said.