CLAY POLICE SAY "CROW' DIED FROM FALL - Was Beaten Earlier By Juveniles Along Clay Street

(04/15/2003)

The death of Clay street person Joey "Crow" Smith, is not related to a beating he took prior to falling over a ten-foot wall, according to Phillip Butcher, a police officer for the town of Clay. The well-known alcoholic who often perched on a pillar in front of the old Clay courthouse, died last week at Braxton Memorial Hospital in Gassaway, two days after several young men were seen beating him in front of the Rite Aid in Clay. Sources have apparently identified the juveniles, and possibly one adult involved in the incident. Smith was found late April 5 on Mount Pisgah Road near the Clay town limits and was taken to a hospital. Butcher said that after examining medical reports, the state medical examiner determined that the fall, and not the alleged beating, appeared to be the cause of death. However, the Hur Herald learned last week that no autopsy was done. The Clay policemen said he spent several hours investigating the alleged beating and turned the information over to the Clay County prosecutor's office. Smith had been the target for violence before, he said. See earlier stories about "Crow" in The Herald.

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