Motion to suppress evidence filed in Hunt County capital murder case
Jan. 6—By Brad Kellar
Herald-Banner Staff
The attorney for Jacques Dshawn Smith is seeking to have evidence at his upcoming capital murder trial thrown out, claiming her client's constitutional rights were violated during the investigation into a double homicide in Commerce almost two years ago.
In a motion to suppress, defense counsel Jessica McDonald also argued that her client is not mentally competent to stand trial in connection with the Feb. 4, 2020, deaths of Abbaney Matts and her sister Deja on the Texas A&M University-Commerce campus.
A hearing on McDonald's motion is scheduled today, Friday, in the 196th District Court. The trial in Smith's case is scheduled to start Feb. 20.
Smith, 24, remains in custody at the Hunt County Detention Center. He is being held in lieu of $2 million bond.
Smith was reported to be the ex-boyfriend of Abbaney Matts.
Hunt County District Attorney Noble D. Walker Jr. has waived the death penalty if Smith is found guilty, in which case he would be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
McDonald's motion claims that investigators interrogating Smith following his Feb. 4, 2020 arrest violated his Miranda Warning under the Fifth Amendment, in part because Smith has an "intellectual disability" that made him unable to understand his rights against potential self-incrimination. McDonald claimed Smith has a "Full Scale IQ of 57."
McDonald's motion argues that any statements made by Smith should be thrown out and not used as evidence should the trial proceed as scheduled.
The double homicide in Commerce is not the only serious crime for which Smith stands accused.
The defendant, along with two other men, also is accused of capital murder in Denton County in connection with the death of Steven Daniels on Dec. 31, 2019. Smith also faces Dallas County charges of aggravated robbery and evading arrest. He has pleaded not guilty.
