LEONARDTOWN, Md. (May 7, 2009)—A woman and her two children may be alive today because she had the presence of mind to flee her home and seek safety after her husband allegedly violently assaulted both teenage children and then displayed a handgun saying, "I am going to make you famous, I don't have anything to lose."
The husband, Donnie Smith, Sr., 41, of Lexington Park was arrested after local police executed a search and seizure warrant at his residence Tuesday. Police say the handgun was recovered at that time.
Sheriff's office patrol deputies say they were alerted to the situation in the home on Monday.
According to police, Smith first assaulted his 13 year-old son, who wears leg braces, by pushing him down stairs several weeks ago. On Sunday Smith allegedly assaulted his 16 year-old daughter by punching her in the face several times and pointing a handgun at her. Police say Smith then showed his wife the handgun and said, "I am going to make you famous, I don't have anything to lose."
The woman told police she took her children and fled the following day, Monday, because of her husband's propensity for violence.
Detectives from the Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI) picked up the investigation. The following day, Tuesday, detectives, with the assistance of the St. Mary's County Emergency Services Team (EST), executed the search and seizure warrant and made the arrest.
Smith was charged with First Degree Assault, 2 counts of Second Degree Assault, 2 counts of Child Abuse, and Possession of a Firearm by a Felon. He was incarcerated in the St. Mary's County Detention Center.