After a jury in Jefferson County, Colorado acquitted a man of second-degree murder and manslaughter charges this week, activists with the Denver Justice Project were quick to object to the decision. Blaming both prosecutors and the jury, the activists accused the Jefferson County D.A. of undercharging Jeremy Smith, and claimed the man was the beneficiary of "racial bias in the application of self-defense laws". 

Unfortunately for the Denver Justice Project, the facts of the case suggest that the jury made the right call, regardless of the color of Smith's skin. 

Smith was accused of murdering 33-year-old Adam Fresquez after the pair were involved in a road rage dispute back on May 3, 2023. Witnesses reported both men cut each other off on the road before pulling into a Tesla charging station in Edgewater, Colorado. Fresquez got out of his car and approached Smith's vehicle. Smith told investigators that Fresquez pulled a gun on him and was trying to fight, which led to Smith macing Fresquez. Smith alleged that Fresquez then pulled a gun, which led to Smith firing shots in self-defense. 

Police did find a gun on Fresquez and another in his vehicle, both of which were lawfully owned and possessed. Toxicology reports, however, also discovered Fresquez had cocaine and fentanyl in his system at the time of his death. Eyewitnesses described Fresquez as the aggressor in the encounter with Smith, though at least two of them said they never saw Fresquez draw his firearm.

Fresquez was shot twice in the back, and passed away at a local hospital the same day. Prosecutors argued that when Smith maced Fresquez, the spray did cause him to retreat, and when Smith fired his gun he was not in imminent danger. Smith's attorneys, meanwhile, argued that their client was acting to protect his life.

Smith’s attorneys said Smith could’ve reacted differently but had to figure out how to survive.

“We don't all react the best way when we encounter difficult people, but what that shouldn't mean is that somebody approaches your car with a gun when all you wanted to do was charge your car and do your job,” said defense attorney Nate Smith.

The prosecution said Smith already neutralized Fresquez with mace and didn’t need to shoot him. They described Smith’s actions as reckless in killing the 33-year-old.

“In that moment that Mr. Smith shot Adam, Adam did not pose an imminent threat. He was not about to use imminent force or unlawful physical force against Mr. Smith,” prosecutor Stephen Scheffel said. “He reasonably believed a lesser degree of force was inadequate. We know that this is not the case because he maced him and the mace worked. Adam stepped away, and the mace worked. He used a lesser degree of force to neutralize the situation and then chose to shoot him in the back twice.”

It took seven months for prosecutors to charge Smith, which itself is an indication that the case against him wasn't cut-and-dried. But the Denver Justice Project maintains that when the Jefferson County D.A. did formally charge Smith, they cut him some undeserved slack. 

In a released statement, the advocacy group acknowledged the district attorney’s efforts in holding Smith accountable. But, they believe justice wasn’t served for Fresquez. They have maintained that the outcome would’ve been different if Fresquez was white.   

“We firmly believe that if the roles in this case had been reversed, Adam Fresquez would have been arrested immediately and charged with first-degree murder. Instead, Jeremy Smith was granted an extraordinary level of leniency that is almost never afforded to people of color, people like Adam,” the Denver Justice Project said in a statement. “This case is yet another example of racial bias in the application of self-defense laws, where white defendants are far more likely to be justified, especially when the victim is a person of color. The system grants them the benefit of the doubt — a clear message about whose lives are valued and whose are not.”

I supposed it's possible that the Denver Justice Project is right and a jury in Jefferson County saw Jeremy Smith's pale skin and gave him the benefit of the doubt. But it's also possible (and I'd say far more likely) that the members of the jury still had reasonable doubts about whether Smith's acts constituted cold-blooded murder or were a legitimate act of self-defense. 

Smith wasn't the initial aggressor. In fact, he never left his vehicle. It was Fresquez who approached Smith, and eyewitnesses reported that he was banging on Smith's car window and appeared to be looking for a fight. While prosecutors alleged that Fresquez retreated after being maced and didn't pose a threat to Smith at that point, he did have a gun on his person (and another in his vehicle), and may very well have been reaching for his gun when he was shot, even if he was facing away from Smith at the time. 

I didn't sit in the Jefferson County courtroom to hear all six days worth of testimony, but based on the reporting of the trial that I've seen the jury's verdict doesn't sound wildly off-base. Remember, it wasn't up to Smith's attorneys to prove he acted in self-defense. It was up to the D.A. to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Smith wasn't defending himself; that he had no legitimate fear for his life at the time of the shooting, and think they simply weren't able to do that. Fresquez's death may be tragic, but that doesn't mean it was murder, and Smith's acquittal certainly isn't evidence of racial bias on the jury or within the Jefferson County D.A.'s office.