In the fall of 1996, Shirley Ree Smith moved to Van Nuys, California, from Illinois to help her daughter Tomeka care for newborn Etzel, 14-month-old Yondale and 3-year-old Yolanda. On the night of Etzel's death, Smith was sleeping in the living room of her sister's apartment with the three grandchildren sleeping on the sofa and love seat. The baby slid onto the carpeted floor at one point, Smith said, but showed no signs of injury when she resettled him. When she later got up to use the bathroom, she found him lifeless and summoned paramedics.
Smith was arrested for murdering Etzel by violent shaking and sentenced in 1997 to 15 years to life. In 2006, Smith's guilty verdict was set aside on appeal and Smith went free after serving a total of ten years. By early 2011, Smith's appeal was overturned and authorities sought to have her returned to California. Gov. Jerry Brown commuted Smith's sentence to time served in April 2012. Shirley Ree Smith now lives with her daughter in Illinois.
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