Former cop convicted of manslaughter to be released after plea deal with Alabama AG

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall prior to the State of the State address by Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 in Montgomery, Ala. (Stew Milne for Alabama Reflector)

A former Montgomery police officer convicted of manslaughter in the 2016 death of a Montgomery man will be released from prison after reaching a plea deal with Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall.

Marshall’s office announced the deal with Aaron Cody Smith, convicted in the 2016  death of 59-year-old Gregory Gunn in a press release Wednesday.

“Today, my Office and former Montgomery Police Officer Cody Smith reached a plea agreement that has been approved and entered by the court. Mr. Smith pleaded to manslaughter and will now be released from prison on time served,” Marshall said in a statement released Wednesday.

Montgomery County District Attorney Daryl Bailey said in a statement reported by al.com that he was “very disappointed (Smith) is being released early, which is a privilege not afforded to most convicted killers.”

Smith was incarcerated at Limestone Correctional Facility, according to the Alabama Department of Corrections.

According to the Montgomery Advertiser, Smith, who is white, stopped Gunn, who was walking home from a friend’s house, at about 3:20 a.m. on Feb. 25, 2016. Smith asked Gunn, who was Black, to submit to a stop-and-frisk, but Gunn fled during the pat down. Smith chased, tased and beat Gunn, who later picked up a painter’s pole and charged at Smith. Smith shot at him seven times. Five bullets hit Gunn, who died near his family home.

The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office charged Smith, and a Dale County jury found him guilty of manslaughter in 2019. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison.  The Alabama Supreme Court rejected his appeal in 2022.

Earlier in February, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office took over the case from the district attorney without offering an explanation, according to WSFA.

“I firmly believe that Mr. Smith was due a new trial, but after eight years of watching this protracted litigation, I exerted my authority to bring this case to a close,” Marshall said. “Mr. Smith has pleaded guilty to the offense for which he was convicted, in exchange for returning to his family. I believe that this is a fair and appropriate outcome.”

Marshall’s statement said he was “acutely aware of the pain and suffering” the Gunn family had experienced, and that he hoped they would “find some closure and healing with this matter finally resolved.”

Updated at 8:43 a.m. Friday. Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this story said Gunn, not Smith, was incarcerated at Limestone Correctional Facility.

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