RICHMOND, Va. — The Richmond Police officer shot by a suspect he was chasing over the weekend has been released from the hospital, according to RPD Police Chief Alfred Durham.
Police said Keith Smith, Jr. shot the officer in the leg on Sunday, January 31, after running when officers approached him near the intersection of Garland Avenue and Hooper Street.
Smith, 23, has been charged with three felonies, including aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Sunday’s shooting marked the 23-year-old’s third arrest in Richmond.
Court records indicated Smith was previously arrested in 2010 on a number of drug and gun charges, including possession of drugs without prescription, possession of a gun with drugs and possession of a gun by a convicted felon.
Keith V. Smith, Jr. (PHOTO: Richmond Police)
CBS 6 legal expert Todd Stone said such offenses could lead to life prison sentence for Smith.
Smith appeared in court Monday and is being held without bond. He is due back in court March 3.
Shooting incident
Richmond Police spokesperson Gene Lepley said the incident began at about 12:15 a.m. when the officer approached Smith near the corner of Garland Avenue and Hooper Street.
“It was just a ‘stop and talk,'” Lepley said. “They do it all the time. When you have somebody out at night, you engage those people and see what’s going on. You find out what’s happening.”
But Smith began to run, Lepley said. As the police officer gave chase, he fired multiple shots at the officer. One of the shots struck the officer in the leg. That officer returned fire, but did not strike Smith. The other two assisting officers did not fire their weapons in the pursuit.
