Man killed by police Friday wasn’t his usual self, neighbor says

Hours before being shot and killed by school police in the south valley, James Francis Smyth wasn't his usual self, according to his next-door neighbor.

The 55-year-old was known to be overly talkative, friendly and "harmless," but also — and in the past six months — the narrator of "outlandish" tales who had lost touch with reality, neighbor Mitch Harper, 47, said Saturday.

The timeframe for Smyth's change coincided with a divorce, according to Harper. Court documents show that divorce was filed for in May.

Harper said Smyth also was battling stomach cancer and in past days stopped shaving and it appeared as if he wasn't taking showers. When asked if the illness was another one of Smyth's stories, Harper said he had seen his surgery scars.

The Clark County School District police said Smyth drove his car into a Metro squad car Friday afternoon near the intersection of Spencer Street and Windmill Lane.

It hit the front of the vehicle, then hit the back of it, too, school district police Capt. Ken Young said Friday night.

Smyth didn't stop when Metro tried to pull him over, Young said. He proceeded toward Desert Bloom Park, at the intersection of Maryland Parkway and Wigwam Avenue.

Smyth turned into the parking lot and was headed at a "high rate of speed" toward two school police officers, who were talking to students in an unrelated investigation, Young said. The officers shot at the approaching car.

Smyth died from multiple gunshot wounds, the Clark County coroner's office said Saturday.

Metro and school police officers were still at the scene and the parking lot's entrances were still blocked off Saturday afternoon.

Friday morning was the "first time Jim didn't say a word," Harper said. Smyth wrote on a spiral notebook and "seemed deep in thought." He would often tell stories about war and mingling with many "Hollywood" movie stars.

"It came to the point every conversation we had, there was no reality in it," Harper said.

Harper said that he and his wife in the past few days became worried about Smyth, who would often openly carry a pink-colored handgun. They stalled, Harper said, because "if you have a right to carry and you're not doing anything, there really wasn't anything you could say."

Harper didn't expand on how outlandish those stories had been in recent days. It wasn't immediately clear on Saturday if Smyth served in the military.

He would dress up and take up characters. "Today he was Jamaican, the next day he was Irish," Harper said. "And he dressed in full gear."

Smyth was "harmless" and often expressed positive opinions about law enforcement, Harper said. However, Harper was "not surprised" when he heard about the shooting.

"I knew eventually that something was going to happen because he was losing grip with reality."

Harper, who looked visibly shaken, said Smyth's death was tragic. "It's a loss of a life. He was a good person. He had a good heart."

Metro and school district police did not release more details on Saturday and are expected to update news media next week.

A motorcyclist remained in critical condition Saturday after being struck near the shooting site by an SUV driven by a man later arrested on a felony DUI charge, police said. The motorcyclist, a 42-year-old man, suffered a leg fracture and "severe" internal injuries, police said.

The crash, although not directly linked to the shooting, occurred several hundred feet south of the park where the shooting occurred, as Metro diverted traffic from the shooting scene.

Keith Richards, 44, was arrested and booked at the Clark County Detention Center.

Review-Journal writer Kimber Laux contributed to this report. Contact Ricardo Torres at rtorres@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Find him on Twitter: @rickytwrites.