January 3, 2024 • 46 mins
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Imagine the shock and dismay when the very methods meant to guide and protect lead to tragedy. Our latest episode takes you through the heart-wrenching journey of Gwen Shamblin's Remnant Fellowship Church, where the lines between faith, discipline, and law blur with devastating consequences. We carefully unravel the story of young Joseph, whose life ended too soon, and the uproar it caused that spotlighted the controversial teachings of Shamblin's church.
With the Smith trial as a backdrop, we share intimate testimonies and chilling details that piece together a narrative fraught with tension and moral quandaries. The episode doesn't shy away from the tough conversations around the impact of religious doctrine on child-rearing practices. We confront the difficult question of where to draw the line between strict parenting and abuse, all while giving voice to those who lived through the ordeal and the legal systems that had to untangle this complex web.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome back crime connoisseurs.
I'm your host, grace D.
I hope everyone had a good newyear.
We're picking up right where weleft off from last week.
To recap, gwen Shamblin hasbecome known as the diet guru.
She started a Christian-basedweight loss program that has
seen incredible results.
But some question how healthythis program can be.
(00:23):
Gwen grew up in the Church ofChrist and married David
Shamblin, who had a master's indivinity.
Gwen and David have twochildren, michael and Michelle
Elizabeth Shamblin.
Gwen's way down workshop grewinto a global sensation within
five years, having 250,000participants and 14,000 churches
(00:45):
throughout 70 countries by 1997.
In 1999, gwen and David startedtheir own church Remnant
Fellowship Church in Brentwood,tennessee.
During her Desert Oasis 2000Way Down Workshop Convention,
gwen announced the start ofRemnant Fellowship.
In her message she rejected theHoly Trinity, that there is one
(01:10):
God in three forms the Father,the Son and the Holy Spirit and
instead emphasized solely on Godand His will.
A month later, gwen sent anemail to her followers saying
that she believed the doctrineof the Trinity was not biblical.
After this, churches startedremoving the Way Down Workshop
(01:31):
classes in their churchesbecause she denied the Trinity.
But despite this, remnantFellowship and Gwen Shamblin
still gained a lot of followers.
She not only built an empirebut almost like her own little
world, even though followerswere all over the country and
overseas.
Gwen emphasized members havingservices within the Remnant
(01:54):
community done by other Remnantmembers, like handyman services,
hair babysitting and musiclessons, to name a few and
having little dealings with theoutside.
Five former employees sued Gwenfor religious discrimination.
They claimed that Gwen forcedthem to attend church if they
(02:16):
worked for her.
35 people had left working atWay Down Workshop, most left on
their own and some were fired.
The lawsuit was settled outsideof court and confidentiality
agreements were signed, but thisisn't the last time that Gwen
and her church would be in theheadlines for legal issues.
(02:36):
In October 2003, firstresponders were called to a home
in Mableton, georgia, for anunconscious, unresponsive boy
After being taken to the nearbyChildren's Hospital.
The boy dies the next day andinvestigators have a lot of
questions.
And that's where we pick up.
(02:56):
As I stated in last week'sepisode, listener discretion is
advised for this episode.
This is part two of Gwen,shamblin and Reminette
Fellowship Church.
Before we kick off, I want tolet you all know that I'm going
(03:47):
to cover Joseph's death in itsentirety, from start to finish
jumping ahead of other things.
So everything related to Josephis all together, and then we'll
go back in chronological order.
On October 8th 2003, the parentstold authorities that Joseph
had passed out and neverregained consciousness after the
(04:09):
family gathered in the kitchento participate in prayer
sessions with their church.
Via the internet, the dad'sname is also Joseph, but his is
spelled with a P-H and the son'sis with an F, so from now on
I'll refer to the dad as BigJoseph to cut down on any
possible confusion.
(04:29):
Big Joseph reportedly toldpolice that when he went to pick
Joseph up he was warm to thetouch, wet with sweat and
unresponsive.
He thought his son wasoverheating, so he carried
Joseph to the carport and laidhim down on the concrete, hoping
it would have a cooling effect,but that didn't work.
(04:50):
They then called 911 for helpand when Cop County Fire and
Rescue responded they found8-year-old Joseph lying on his
back in the dining room, notbreathing and without a pulse.
He was rushed to the nearbychildren's hospital in hopes
that there was still time tosave the little boy.
(05:10):
Sadly, joseph passed away thenext day.
The hospital called the medicalexaminer's office at 7.55 pm on
October 9th to inform them ofJoseph's death and they said
that he had died as a result ofinjuries sustained from child
abuse.
(05:31):
Sonia Smith told police that onthe day they called 911, the
couple had disciplined Josephwith a series of glue stick
whippings, delivered inincrements of 10.
She said that Joseph was lockedin a closet and made to pray to
a picture of Jesus mounted onthe ceiling.
(05:51):
He was monitored in the kitchenvia a camera in the closet.
Hal Bennett, a medicalexaminer's investigator, arrived
at the children's hospital at8.30 pm and met with a woman
named Christie, the ICU chargenurse.
She informed Hal that Josephhad swelling of the brain and
(06:15):
multiple blunt force traumawounds to his body and
extremities.
Christie then advised Hal thatcopies of the medical records
were available for review by themedical examiner, dr Brian
Friss, chief medical examiner ofCobb County.
After talking with the hospitaland getting all the paperwork
(06:37):
in order, joseph and the medicalrecords were transported to the
Cobb County Forensic ScienceCenter.
Hal left the hospital at 9.30pm and arrived at the County
Forensic Center at 10 pm.
The next day, on October 10th,at 1.45 pm, dr Brian Frist
(07:00):
started Joseph Smith's autopsy.
To understand the extent ofthis case and what is to come.
I'm going to go over theautopsy report in detail because
, with what will be coming uplater in the episode, you guys
need to have a completeunderstanding of what was found
(07:22):
on this little boy.
At the time of the examination,joseph had on a disposable
diaper.
No other clothing or valuableswere present.
When examining Joseph's head andface, Dr Frist found a reddish
bruise on the right forehead atthe hairline, approximately 3 by
(07:46):
2 cm.
Nondescript scarring in theleft lateral forehead, within
the hairline, a large red bruisemeasuring 4 by 3 cm on the
right lateral cheek, involvingthe right lower eyelid and
extended up to the right eyebrow.
There was a small bruise overthe left mandible measuring 1 by
(08:11):
1.5 cm.
An additional area of bruisingwas found lateral to the left
eye, measuring 1 by 1 cm.
Another 1.5 by 1 cm bruise waslocated on the left eyebrow.
A small laceration withbruising was found on the right
(08:33):
mandible, measuring 2 by 1.5 cm.
A small abrasion was found inthe right cheek's lining and at
the back of the right lip.
On Joseph's chest, dr Fristfound a 3 by 3 cm circular
bruise and above the bruisethere was a scar 4 by 1.5 cm in
(08:58):
the shape of a loop Towards themiddle of both the loop-shaped
scar and bruise.
There is scarring in the shapeof a right angle, with the two
arms of the right anglemeasuring 7 cm and 3 cm.
There was also a small abrasionto the left nipple.
The abdomen was flat withnondescript scars.
(09:24):
Joseph's back showed extensivenondescript bruises, scars and
contusions.
The most prominent was in themiddle of the back.
There was another loop-shapedscar at a 45 degree angle
extending over the left back.
There were additional numerousbruises and contusions all over
(09:47):
his back.
Many of them were in parallellines.
In the buttocks region therewere extensive areas of scarring
and abrasions.
On the right buttock there wasa large area of scarring with
excoriation.
In the midline there werehealed scars with areas of
(10:09):
excoriation.
The left buttock also showedabrasions with excoriation.
However, it was to a lesserdegree than the one on the right
.
The bruises found on the backand the buttocks were of various
ages.
The upper extremities showedextensive bruising, contusions
(10:31):
and abrasions.
There was a large bruise overthe right shoulder measuring
approximately 7 x 6 cm.
This contusion extended overtowards the back.
The forearm showed bruisescomprised of linear parallel
lines.
Those bruises were of variousages.
The lower extremities alsoshowed extensive bruising,
(10:56):
contusions and abrasions ofvarious ages On the posterior
aspect of both thighs.
Most prominent on the leftextremity were extensive areas
of bruising and abrasions withexcoriation.
These areas also showedprominent scarring.
Many of the changes wereconsistent with thermal burns.
(11:20):
In addition, the extremitiesshowed extensive contusions and
bruises comprised of linearparallel lines of injury with
areas of pattern loop bruising.
The brain showed signs of edema.
Edema is swelling caused by toomuch fluid trapped in the
(11:40):
body's tissues.
Dr Brian Frist determined thecause of death to be sequala of
blunt forced head traumaassociated with acute and
chronic abuse.
The manner of death was ruledto be a homicide.
On December 8th 2003, bigJoseph and Sonia Smith were
(12:04):
arrested and charged with fourcounts of felony murder, five
counts of first-degree crueltyto children, three counts of
aggravated assault and twocounts of false imprisonment.
They faced 30 years to life inprison if convicted of murder.
They spent four months in jailbefore remnant church members
(12:28):
posted their bond.
Joseph's death came just monthsafter the July 25th 2003 death
of his 17-month old brother,malik.
The Journal Constitutionreported that his death was
attributed to pneumonia,although an investigation was
(12:48):
ongoing.
The Journal Constitution alsoreported that a 14-year-old
relative of Joseph Smith's, whodescribed the child as being
demon-possessed, a statementwith which the parents agreed.
A Department of Family andChildren Services report
reported that the Smiths belongto remnant Fellowship
(13:10):
International, which operatesout of Way Down Workshop on
Seabird Lane in Cool Springs.
A new church was underconstruction on Franklin Road in
Brentwood Following Joseph'sdeath.
During an interview with DFCSworkers, big Joseph told them
(13:31):
the family had been watching awebcast of remnant religious
services when Joseph began atantrum.
That same day Big Joseph Smithtold authorities he disciplined
Joseph by hitting him with atwo-foot-long whipping-like glue
stick.
According to police, big Josephand Sonia used the long glue
(13:54):
stick to beat Joseph andsometimes ordered their older
son, michael, to hold Josephwhile he was being beaten.
On the day of his death, soniasaid Joseph had gotten several
whippings, which generally camein increments of 10.
Former Cobb County detectiveDavid Schweizer told A&E True
(14:18):
Crime that he compared a gluestick with the fresh marks on
Joseph's body and it was aperfect match.
Detective Schweizer said thatafter he got a recording of a
phone call between Sonia Smithand Gwen Shamblin from a source,
he drove four hours to executea search warrant for remnant
(14:38):
Fellowship's facilities inconjunction with the local law
enforcement.
Take a listen to the recordedcall between Sonia and Gwen.
Speaker 2 (14:50):
We've got four people on the line and we would love
to hear from you guys.
Go ahead, call her number onethis is Sonia Smith in Atlanta.
Sonia, you have four children.
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Go ahead, sonia, well first I wanted to thank you.
Last week my seven-year-old hewas going through some changes.
He was very destructive.
Anything of mine he was tryingto destroy.
He strangled one of my babieswell, attempted to.
(15:27):
He tried to set the house onfire and when I called I was at
the end of my robe and didn'tknow what to do.
He was not even fine doing apaddling and I got to speak with
Ted Inger and the advice hegave me was just wonderful and I
just wanted to say thank you.
It's like looking at adifferent child.
(15:49):
I did exactly what Ted told meto do to spank him on the back
of his thighs, take everythingout of his room, and that was
like a two-hour job.
But we got everything out ofthere and locked him in there
from that Friday until Mondayand only left him in the room
with his bottle, and I justpraise God for you guys because
(16:15):
that's something.
Otherwise I probably would havehad to go to the world in this
message, you know, calling thepolice, or I just had no clue
how to deal with that and I justreally wanted to say thank you.
He is.
He comes to me every day, likethree or four times a day.
I home school and I work athome, so we see each other a day
(16:35):
.
Mom, is there anything I can dofor you?
Can I help you?
What do you need done, mom?
And that is such an amazinggift and I just wanted to say
thank you and that's just fromobeying, setting those
boundaries, making it clear andjust following God's lead.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
And so people need to know there's hope and that's a
miracle.
You've got a child that's goingfrom just bizarre down to in
control, so I'll praise God.
And so what is the fear?
Oh, that child, or that poorchild, are you gonna, you know,
hurt his self-esteem, or you'regonna, let me tell you something
they get self-esteem when theylose himself.
(17:19):
It is all about losingthemselves and then looking out
to someone else.
He was full of self and hewanted what he wanted when he
wanted attention, he wantedwhatever, you know.
But he can only get that fromGod.
Only God can fill it up.
And so we are schooling thesekids.
We are, you know, ruining theirlives by even letting them
(17:41):
think about themselves at all.
So thank you, sonya, forsharing that.
Who else is on the line?
Speaker 1 (17:46):
On Wednesday, may 19th 2004, law enforcement
officials raided the Way DownWorkshop warehouse in Franklin,
tennessee, just before lunchtime.
By the time the press arrived,all seven members of the
Franklin Police's detectivesdivision, chief Jackie Moore,
deputy Chief Alice Siegel andLieutenant Mike Jordan, were all
(18:10):
on scene.
The raid was part of acontinued investigation into the
role the teachings of remnantfellowship church played in the
death of Joseph Smith.
They collected files andcomputer discs over two days.
The search didn't yieldanything criminal, so Detective
(18:31):
Schweizer Superiors told himthere was pretty much nothing
else he could do.
He retired from Cobb County in2020 and now works as an
investigator for the BanksCounty Sheriff's Office and as a
task force officer with theDepartment of Homeland Security.
Police felt that the church hadplayed some role in Joseph's
(18:55):
death.
In an article with the New YorkTimes, corporal Brodie Stodd of
the Cobb County, georgia policesaid quote a lot of our
evidence is that they disciplinetheir children in ways the
church recommended.
It's possible that these twoparents took what they learned
to the extreme end quote InFebruary 2007, the trial of Big
(19:23):
Joseph and Sonia Smith began.
They were tried together andmembers of the remnant
fellowship got together and paidtheir legal fees.
Assistant district attorneyEleanor Dixon told the jurors
quote Joseph's body, will tellyou the story of what happened
to him.
(19:43):
There was beating after beating, after beating and then he died
.
And quote Assistant districtattorney Dixon told jurors that
Joseph was beaten by his parentsusing various objects,
including a glue stick, whichshe described as a foot-lung
(20:04):
piece of flexible material forthe use inside of a glue gun.
She said the boy was known as awild youth who had issues, but
his parents never took him to adoctor or to see a counselor.
The Cobb County medical examinerdetermined that Joseph died
(20:24):
from blows to the head and thefirst responders who responded
to the family's emergency callsaid his body was covered with
bruises.
Prosecutors stated that Josephwas locked in a wooden box and
confined to a closet for hoursat a time before he died in
October 2003.
(20:45):
Authorities say that Joseph waschronically abused and died
from a blow to the head.
The couple's attorney arguedthat Joseph did not die from the
injuries and that the medicalexaminer failed to perform
crucial tests that would havefound the actual cause of his
death.
They suggested that Joseph diedas a result of a bacterial
(21:10):
infection from chronic eczema.
Big Joseph and Sonia toldauthorities.
Joseph passed out and neverregained consciousness after the
family gathered in the kitchento participate in a prayer
session with their church.
Via the internet, the Smithcase led authorities to
(21:31):
investigate the church, thoughpolice who testified during the
couple's trial said they couldnot find a link between the
boy's death and the church'steaching about punishment.
It was found that one of thechurch's leaders had given a
talk during the February 2003women's conference where he
(21:51):
talked about having a showdownspanking with his two-year-old
daughter.
Here take a listen.
Speaker 4 (21:59):
Hey guys, this is David Martin.
I just want to give a realtwo-minute testimony just to say
that since we really have beenblessed, jennifer and I have
been blessed with this advicefrom Gwen and have applied it to
a six-year-old, a two-year-oldand an 11-month-old, and
actually much longer than that.
We've been doing it since we'veknown Gwen and since we've
(22:20):
gotten this advice, I can't tellyou what a difference it's made
.
A year ago, ourtwo-and-a-half-year-old Avery,
we had a real showdown with herand her will was just, was
ruling and enough was enough andwe had a leg spanking over and
over and over and over and overand over again and time one
(22:44):
evening, and this was after justa series of these things over a
few weeks, and we stayed on topof it for a couple, three weeks
and that has been a differentchild in this last year because
of that.
And now I can say now I can saythat I feel real confident if
she will, we're training up thatchild the way she should go and
(23:06):
she won't depart from it.
She's not going to come homedrunk at 16 years old.
She's not going to come home,you know, pregnant and and I
it's all for God, all this isfor God and it is about looking
at those children, loving Godmore than you love those
children and understanding thatyou are.
By training up these kids andapplying exactly what you've
(23:26):
learned today, you are providingmore little vessels for God to
be king, more little vesselswhere God can dwell, and you are
.
You are, like Gwen was saying,reversing the cycle of sin in
your family's generations andyou get a chance to see in them
everything godly and righteousthat you've had to beat out of
yourself.
For you know, as adults, nowyou get a chance to correct all
(23:50):
that before it ever happens.
And you will marvel in your oldage when you watch these kids
not struggle with hardlyanything.
And and I just I can justtestify as as a parent for me
and Jennifer with small childrenthat this absolutely works.
And if you will do it and do thehard thing, all you'll have to
(24:11):
do is do it for just a few weeksand then it'll get easier and
easier.
And now we hardly ever have tospank Avery because she obeys so
quickly and readily and if thatwill tries to creep back up, we
just remind her of who she isand it doesn't take but about
two minutes of that and thenthat's over again and then she's
fine.
But it is so rare now that Ijust I just praise God for it
(24:33):
and what you've gotten today isjust a drink of living water.
And if you'll just do it, justdo it and and seek after it and
put it into practice, you willbe so blessed and you'll never
have to deal with this hardlyever again.
It'll hardly ever creep up everagain.
And if it ever did, you justpop it back down.
And the good news is, if thegod will rule and you will get
(24:55):
to correct everything that youever did wrong in your own life,
you'll get to see it happen inrighteousness and truth in your
own kids lives and break thatcurse of sin in your, in your
family's generation.
Speaker 1 (25:09):
Remnant leaders have supported Big Joseph and Sonia
throughout the case, with somemembers even attending the
couple's trial in Georgia.
They believe the Smiths claimsthat Joseph's death was an
accident and have helped pay fortheir lawyers.
Sonia told the police that shenormally gave the children their
(25:30):
whippings in increments of 10blows each and that Joseph had
gotten several of those whippingsessions on the day of his
death.
The police reported that theSmiths locked Joseph in his room
to pray to a picture of Jesuson the ceiling and in a closet
for days and even weeks he wasgiven only a bucket for a toilet
(25:54):
.
An older son sometimes heldJoseph down while the parents
beat him with implements.
Police officer Stephen Gaynorsaid Sonia quote jokingly told
me if he ever goes to thehospital they're gonna drag
mommy and daddy to jail.
End quote.
Another police officer saidthat the father told him after
(26:18):
Joseph's death quote I'm notgoing to lie to you, he's
bruised.
End quote.
The police wrote in a reportthe parents showed no remorse
and were very defensive abouttheir religion and its
recommended discipline methods.
Joseph's older brother, michaelBooth, who was 16 at the time,
(26:41):
testified in court that Josephwas frequently hit with footlong
glue sticks, coat hangers,belts and an extension cord.
Everyone in the family wasafraid of him because he was so
destructive and claimed to be asoldier of the devil, especially
when the family engaged inreligious activity.
(27:04):
Michael testified that onOctober 8th 2003 the family was
watching a webcast churchservice of remnant fellowship
when Joseph began quotescreaming, cursing and carrying
on Every time we prayed.
He tried to do things to mylittle brother, james.
End quote.
The Smiths told Michael to putJoseph inside of a wood-lined
(27:28):
chest.
After Michael got Joseph in thechest, he tied the lid closed
with an extension cord becauseJoseph kept popping his head up.
Michael testified that Josephcontinued cursing inside the box
, yelling quote I'm going tokill all you mother-effors when
(27:49):
I get out.
James is the first on my list.
I'm going to slit his throatend quote.
10 or 15 minutes later hestopped yelling.
Michael cut the extension cordand opened the chest.
Joseph was unresponsive.
Big Joseph ran to the chest,pulled his son out, attempted
(28:12):
resuscitation and called 911.
Joseph died in the hospital thenext day.
Medical examiners testified thatJoseph died of blunt force,
trauma in acute and chronicabuse and positional
asphyxiation.
All topsy photos showed hisbody covered with abrasions and
(28:36):
bruises, as well as brainswelling, citing a high white
cell count in Joseph's blood.
Two doctors testified for thedefense that Joseph died of an
infection rather than bluntforce trauma.
A dermatologist testified thatthe marks on Joseph's skin were
because of eczema rather thanbruising.
(29:00):
During the trial, laura Boonetestified to when she babysat
Joseph for the Smiths six monthsbefore Joseph died.
Laura was 14 at the time,worked as a babysitter and made
a report of child abuse aboutJoseph without knowing his name.
She found out it was him whenshe saw his face on TV during a
(29:24):
news report of his death.
Laura, whose family is not partof Remnant Fellowship, says she
started babysitting for thechurch families because her
neighbors were members.
Laura and her friends oftenbabysat kids in a large group
while their parents attendedchurch gatherings.
(29:45):
Laura says she met Joseph inApril 2003 when the Smith family
attended a church event.
She saw Joseph crying in acorner so she asked his father
what she should do.
She said quote.
His father hit his fist intohis hand and he said hit him
hard.
I was shocked.
(30:06):
I said no End.
Quote.
She says his father then tookJoseph into the next room to
discipline him.
Quote.
I don't know what he was doinghitting, spanking, whatever, but
we could all hear thathappening.
End quote.
The next day Laura and hermother went to Tennessee's
(30:30):
Department of Children Servicesto make a child abuse report.
She said quote I didn't knowthe child's name or the dad's
name.
I knew they were from Atlanta,but there wasn't enough detail
for DCS to do a proper follow-upinvestigation.
End quote Laura describedJoseph as pretty rambunctious
(30:53):
with behavioral issues thatprofessionals might have best
addressed.
Here's a clip from Laura'stestimony during the trial.
Speaker 6 (31:02):
I just want to ask you a couple of questions about
the defendant, joseph Smith inthis case.
Do you know Joseph?
Speaker 5 (31:09):
Yes, and how do you know him?
He goes to a room in fellowshipand I babysat for the kid, his
kid, joseph.
Speaker 6 (31:19):
Smith at the Wadow Workshop.
Okay, I'm going to back up alittle bit and ask you is
babysitting something that youregularly do now?
Speaker 3 (31:28):
No, ma'am.
Speaker 6 (31:28):
Did you regularly do it?
In 2003?
Yes, and how often would yousay you babysat for a remnant
fellowship?
Speaker 5 (31:37):
At least a dozen times over the whole course that
I babysat for them.
What is remnant fellowship?
I see it as a church based offof the Wadow.
Speaker 6 (31:48):
Workshop that go and channel in the started.
Now you said you babysat forthem a number of times.
When you babysat for defendantJoseph Smith son, where did that
actual babysitting?
Speaker 5 (32:03):
take place.
It was at the Wadow Workshop.
Where was that On Seaboard Lanein Brooklyn, Tennessee.
Speaker 6 (32:08):
That's in Tennessee.
Yes, do you rememberapproximately when you babysat
for him?
Speaker 5 (32:15):
This was in the spring, around Easter time, and
what year?
2003.
And do you see Joseph Smithhere today, the dad Joseph Smith
?
Yes, okay, where is he, sorry?
Okay, can you describe whathe's wearing?
A suit with the red tie.
Speaker 6 (32:38):
And when you saw him around Easter of 2003,.
Can you describe the place yousaw him?
Speaker 5 (32:46):
It was in the Wadow Workshop.
There was a big area with likea sink and rocking tears and
nursery type area, and then offto the side was a bigger room
for the kids to play, and thenwe were in that bigger room
where all the kids were.
How many kids were youbabysitting at that time?
That day there were probably 20plus kids.
(33:07):
So it's daytime or nighttimebabysitting.
Speaker 6 (33:11):
This is in the daytime, and how many
babysitters were there with thechildren.
Speaker 5 (33:16):
I would say seven or eight of us when you babysat
before for this for the RedneckFellowship?
Speaker 6 (33:24):
would that be typical of a number of babysitters?
Yes, ma'am, do you rememberfirst seeing the defendant,
joseph Smith, and child JosephSmith?
Speaker 5 (33:36):
Yes, Would you tell the jury what you saw?
They walked in and, JosephSmith, the baby was in or the
kid was in the corner crying,and I thought maybe his dad had
like a toy or some food orsomething that would make the
kid feel better.
So I asked him what he wouldwant me to do if the kid
(33:58):
continued to cry when the dadwas leaving.
And he just looked at me andsaid hit him hard.
And I said, sir, I'm not goingto hit your son.
What do you want me to do?
And he said, no, really hit himhard.
And I just said that I wouldn't.
Speaker 6 (34:12):
And so he took him into.
Let me stop you right there.
You made an emotion with yourfist in your hand.
Is that the emotion that thisdefendant made?
Yes, ma'am, what happened afteryou said you would?
Speaker 5 (34:24):
not hit his child.
There was a smaller, maybeSunday school type room off to
the side of the nursery and hetook Joseph in there and he was
still crying and we can justhear him hitting him and the son
just wailing.
Now how do you know he was?
He said you heard something.
What did you hear?
Either spanking or hitting, butvery hard hitting or spanking.
(34:47):
Can you describe the sound?
Just a very hard like hit andthen a very wild scream and cry
from Joseph Smith, the son.
Did you see the child and thedad after they left that area?
Yes, ma'am, they came back outand the son stayed the remainder
(35:07):
of the afternoon with us.
Did you ever speak with thechild?
I asked him if he was okay, buthe was still just crying
throughout the he never.
He wasn't very talkative.
He didn't really seem to answerany of my questions.
Did you ever see these twopeople?
Speaker 1 (35:24):
again.
No, ma'am Joseph would havebeen 12 on Friday, February 16,
2007.
In her closing arguments,wednesday the 14th Assistant
District Attorney Dixon sanghappy birthday to Joseph,
leaving the defendants in tears.
(35:45):
Coincidentally, the juryconvicted Big Joseph and Sonia
Smith on Joseph's birthday afelony murder, involuntary
manslaughter, first degreecruelty to children, aggravated
assault, false imprisonment andreckless conduct.
Church members paid for theirbail and legal defense and
(36:10):
crowded the courtroom.
Church leaders said the child'sdeath was an accident from
hitting his head on the banister.
They described the Smith'sdiscipline methods as
traditional spankings andgroundings of the child to his
bedroom and denied they wereabusive.
When sentencing the Smiths onMarch 27, 2007, superior Court
(36:34):
Judge James Badaford said quoteI think it's serious enough
where you should receive themaximum punishment and it should
be on top of life end, quotethe Smiths looked at each other
but said nothing.
As Judge Badaford imposed thesentence, about two dozen
(36:54):
supporters were in the courtroomand several friends spoke on
the couple's behalf, describingthem as kind.
Judge Badaford called theletters of support for the
Smiths amazing but said thesupporters likely didn't have
all the details.
Although the church wasinvestigated after Joseph's
death, police testified duringthe couple's trial they could
(37:18):
not find any link between theboy's death and the religious
institution.
Ted Anger, one of the church'sleaders, said they still believe
the Smiths are innocent.
Outside of the courtroom, tedsaid quote we will support the
Smiths in any way we can.
End.
(37:38):
Quote the Smiths filed a motionin Cobb County for a new trial,
arguing the ineffectiveassistance of counsel of their
defense lawyer, but that wasdenied on October 8th 2009.
An appeal was then brought tothe Supreme Court of Georgia.
This appeal was denied onNovember 8, 2010, when the
(38:03):
Supreme Court of Georgia, on a5-2 vote, upheld the murder
convictions and life prisonsentences given to both Joseph
and Sonia Smith.
The dissenting opinions citedin proper conduct of the trial
judge for allowing unfair andpotentially prejudicial
(38:23):
theatrics by the prosecution togain an outcome based on passion
rather than on the facts of thecase.
They also cited inadequate juryinstructions and definitions
for some specific charges.
A petition was filed onFebruary 7, 2011 with the United
(38:44):
States Supreme Court asking theSupreme Court to review the
decisions made in the lowercourts.
This petition was also deniedon June 27, 2011.
Remnant Fellowship runs andmaintains the Smiths or Innocent
Page.
Currently, sonia isincarcerated at the Arendelle
(39:08):
State Prison, whereas Joseph isserving his sentence at the
McCann State Prison.
At this time, big Joseph andSonia Smith are still members of
Remnant Fellowship Church.
According to the the Smiths orInnocent Web page, remnant
Fellowship started prisonministries where the Smiths
(39:30):
participate in prison workshops.
And, after much debate withinmyself, this is where we're
going to end the episode.
I really wanted to give Josephhis own episode because
highlighting the innocent livesaffected during this time is so
important.
Next week we will finish upwith Gwen Shamblin and Remnant
(39:53):
Fellowship Church.
We're going to go back in orderwith more major events that
happened with Gwen and theChurch.
Be sure to follow on Instagramat CrimeConnoisseurs.
If you have a case suggestion,click the link in the bio, fill
out the form and I'll look intoit, or you can send an email to
(40:14):
CrimeConnoisseurs at gmailcomand for the subject line, put
case suggestion.
In the meantime, keep it classeconosores and I'll catch you on
the next case.
Welcome back crime connoisseurs.
I'm your host, grace D.
I hope everyone had a good newyear.
We're picking up right where weleft off from last week.
To recap, gwen Shamblin hasbecome known as the diet guru.
She started a Christian-basedweight loss program that has
seen incredible results.
But some question how healthythis program can be.
(00:23):
Gwen grew up in the Church ofChrist and married David
Shamblin, who had a master's indivinity.
Gwen and David have twochildren, michael and Michelle
Elizabeth Shamblin.
Gwen's way down workshop grewinto a global sensation within
five years, having 250,000participants and 14,000 churches
(00:45):
throughout 70 countries by 1997.
In 1999, gwen and David startedtheir own church Remnant
Fellowship Church in Brentwood,tennessee.
During her Desert Oasis 2000Way Down Workshop Convention,
gwen announced the start ofRemnant Fellowship.
In her message she rejected theHoly Trinity, that there is one
(01:10):
God in three forms the Father,the Son and the Holy Spirit and
instead emphasized solely on Godand His will.
A month later, gwen sent anemail to her followers saying
that she believed the doctrineof the Trinity was not biblical.
After this, churches startedremoving the Way Down Workshop
(01:31):
classes in their churchesbecause she denied the Trinity.
But despite this, remnantFellowship and Gwen Shamblin
still gained a lot of followers.
She not only built an empirebut almost like her own little
world, even though followerswere all over the country and
overseas.
Gwen emphasized members havingservices within the Remnant
(01:54):
community done by other Remnantmembers, like handyman services,
hair babysitting and musiclessons, to name a few and
having little dealings with theoutside.
Five former employees sued Gwenfor religious discrimination.
They claimed that Gwen forcedthem to attend church if they
(02:16):
worked for her.
35 people had left working atWay Down Workshop, most left on
their own and some were fired.
The lawsuit was settled outsideof court and confidentiality
agreements were signed, but thisisn't the last time that Gwen
and her church would be in theheadlines for legal issues.
(02:36):
In October 2003, firstresponders were called to a home
in Mableton, georgia, for anunconscious, unresponsive boy
After being taken to the nearbyChildren's Hospital.
The boy dies the next day andinvestigators have a lot of
questions.
And that's where we pick up.
(02:56):
As I stated in last week'sepisode, listener discretion is
advised for this episode.
This is part two of Gwen,shamblin and Reminette
Fellowship Church.
Before we kick off, I want tolet you all know that I'm going
(03:47):
to cover Joseph's death in itsentirety, from start to finish
jumping ahead of other things.
So everything related to Josephis all together, and then we'll
go back in chronological order.
On October 8th 2003, the parentstold authorities that Joseph
had passed out and neverregained consciousness after the
(04:09):
family gathered in the kitchento participate in prayer
sessions with their church.
Via the internet, the dad'sname is also Joseph, but his is
spelled with a P-H and the son'sis with an F, so from now on
I'll refer to the dad as BigJoseph to cut down on any
possible confusion.
(04:29):
Big Joseph reportedly toldpolice that when he went to pick
Joseph up he was warm to thetouch, wet with sweat and
unresponsive.
He thought his son wasoverheating, so he carried
Joseph to the carport and laidhim down on the concrete, hoping
it would have a cooling effect,but that didn't work.
(04:50):
They then called 911 for helpand when Cop County Fire and
Rescue responded they found8-year-old Joseph lying on his
back in the dining room, notbreathing and without a pulse.
He was rushed to the nearbychildren's hospital in hopes
that there was still time tosave the little boy.
(05:10):
Sadly, joseph passed away thenext day.
The hospital called the medicalexaminer's office at 7.55 pm on
October 9th to inform them ofJoseph's death and they said
that he had died as a result ofinjuries sustained from child
abuse.
(05:31):
Sonia Smith told police that onthe day they called 911, the
couple had disciplined Josephwith a series of glue stick
whippings, delivered inincrements of 10.
She said that Joseph was lockedin a closet and made to pray to
a picture of Jesus mounted onthe ceiling.
(05:51):
He was monitored in the kitchenvia a camera in the closet.
Hal Bennett, a medicalexaminer's investigator, arrived
at the children's hospital at8.30 pm and met with a woman
named Christie, the ICU chargenurse.
She informed Hal that Josephhad swelling of the brain and
(06:15):
multiple blunt force traumawounds to his body and
extremities.
Christie then advised Hal thatcopies of the medical records
were available for review by themedical examiner, dr Brian
Friss, chief medical examiner ofCobb County.
After talking with the hospitaland getting all the paperwork
(06:37):
in order, joseph and the medicalrecords were transported to the
Cobb County Forensic ScienceCenter.
Hal left the hospital at 9.30pm and arrived at the County
Forensic Center at 10 pm.
The next day, on October 10th,at 1.45 pm, dr Brian Frist
(07:00):
started Joseph Smith's autopsy.
To understand the extent ofthis case and what is to come.
I'm going to go over theautopsy report in detail because
, with what will be coming uplater in the episode, you guys
need to have a completeunderstanding of what was found
(07:22):
on this little boy.
At the time of the examination,joseph had on a disposable
diaper.
No other clothing or valuableswere present.
When examining Joseph's head andface, Dr Frist found a reddish
bruise on the right forehead atthe hairline, approximately 3 by
(07:46):
2 cm.
Nondescript scarring in theleft lateral forehead, within
the hairline, a large red bruisemeasuring 4 by 3 cm on the
right lateral cheek, involvingthe right lower eyelid and
extended up to the right eyebrow.
There was a small bruise overthe left mandible measuring 1 by
(08:11):
1.5 cm.
An additional area of bruisingwas found lateral to the left
eye, measuring 1 by 1 cm.
Another 1.5 by 1 cm bruise waslocated on the left eyebrow.
A small laceration withbruising was found on the right
(08:33):
mandible, measuring 2 by 1.5 cm.
A small abrasion was found inthe right cheek's lining and at
the back of the right lip.
On Joseph's chest, dr Fristfound a 3 by 3 cm circular
bruise and above the bruisethere was a scar 4 by 1.5 cm in
(08:58):
the shape of a loop Towards themiddle of both the loop-shaped
scar and bruise.
There is scarring in the shapeof a right angle, with the two
arms of the right anglemeasuring 7 cm and 3 cm.
There was also a small abrasionto the left nipple.
The abdomen was flat withnondescript scars.
(09:24):
Joseph's back showed extensivenondescript bruises, scars and
contusions.
The most prominent was in themiddle of the back.
There was another loop-shapedscar at a 45 degree angle
extending over the left back.
There were additional numerousbruises and contusions all over
(09:47):
his back.
Many of them were in parallellines.
In the buttocks region therewere extensive areas of scarring
and abrasions.
On the right buttock there wasa large area of scarring with
excoriation.
In the midline there werehealed scars with areas of
(10:09):
excoriation.
The left buttock also showedabrasions with excoriation.
However, it was to a lesserdegree than the one on the right
.
The bruises found on the backand the buttocks were of various
ages.
The upper extremities showedextensive bruising, contusions
(10:31):
and abrasions.
There was a large bruise overthe right shoulder measuring
approximately 7 x 6 cm.
This contusion extended overtowards the back.
The forearm showed bruisescomprised of linear parallel
lines.
Those bruises were of variousages.
The lower extremities alsoshowed extensive bruising,
(10:56):
contusions and abrasions ofvarious ages On the posterior
aspect of both thighs.
Most prominent on the leftextremity were extensive areas
of bruising and abrasions withexcoriation.
These areas also showedprominent scarring.
Many of the changes wereconsistent with thermal burns.
(11:20):
In addition, the extremitiesshowed extensive contusions and
bruises comprised of linearparallel lines of injury with
areas of pattern loop bruising.
The brain showed signs of edema.
Edema is swelling caused by toomuch fluid trapped in the
(11:40):
body's tissues.
Dr Brian Frist determined thecause of death to be sequala of
blunt forced head traumaassociated with acute and
chronic abuse.
The manner of death was ruledto be a homicide.
On December 8th 2003, bigJoseph and Sonia Smith were
(12:04):
arrested and charged with fourcounts of felony murder, five
counts of first-degree crueltyto children, three counts of
aggravated assault and twocounts of false imprisonment.
They faced 30 years to life inprison if convicted of murder.
They spent four months in jailbefore remnant church members
(12:28):
posted their bond.
Joseph's death came just monthsafter the July 25th 2003 death
of his 17-month old brother,malik.
The Journal Constitutionreported that his death was
attributed to pneumonia,although an investigation was
(12:48):
ongoing.
The Journal Constitution alsoreported that a 14-year-old
relative of Joseph Smith's, whodescribed the child as being
demon-possessed, a statementwith which the parents agreed.
A Department of Family andChildren Services report
reported that the Smiths belongto remnant Fellowship
(13:10):
International, which operatesout of Way Down Workshop on
Seabird Lane in Cool Springs.
A new church was underconstruction on Franklin Road in
Brentwood Following Joseph'sdeath.
During an interview with DFCSworkers, big Joseph told them
(13:31):
the family had been watching awebcast of remnant religious
services when Joseph began atantrum.
That same day Big Joseph Smithtold authorities he disciplined
Joseph by hitting him with atwo-foot-long whipping-like glue
stick.
According to police, big Josephand Sonia used the long glue
(13:54):
stick to beat Joseph andsometimes ordered their older
son, michael, to hold Josephwhile he was being beaten.
On the day of his death, soniasaid Joseph had gotten several
whippings, which generally camein increments of 10.
Former Cobb County detectiveDavid Schweizer told A&E True
(14:18):
Crime that he compared a gluestick with the fresh marks on
Joseph's body and it was aperfect match.
Detective Schweizer said thatafter he got a recording of a
phone call between Sonia Smithand Gwen Shamblin from a source,
he drove four hours to executea search warrant for remnant
(14:38):
Fellowship's facilities inconjunction with the local law
enforcement.
Take a listen to the recordedcall between Sonia and Gwen.
Speaker 2 (14:50):
We've got four people on the line and we would love
to hear from you guys.
Go ahead, call her number onethis is Sonia Smith in Atlanta.
Sonia, you have four children.
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Go ahead, sonia, well first I wanted to thank you.
Last week my seven-year-old hewas going through some changes.
He was very destructive.
Anything of mine he was tryingto destroy.
He strangled one of my babieswell, attempted to.
(15:27):
He tried to set the house onfire and when I called I was at
the end of my robe and didn'tknow what to do.
He was not even fine doing apaddling and I got to speak with
Ted Inger and the advice hegave me was just wonderful and I
just wanted to say thank you.
It's like looking at adifferent child.
(15:49):
I did exactly what Ted told meto do to spank him on the back
of his thighs, take everythingout of his room, and that was
like a two-hour job.
But we got everything out ofthere and locked him in there
from that Friday until Mondayand only left him in the room
with his bottle, and I justpraise God for you guys because
(16:15):
that's something.
Otherwise I probably would havehad to go to the world in this
message, you know, calling thepolice, or I just had no clue
how to deal with that and I justreally wanted to say thank you.
He is.
He comes to me every day, likethree or four times a day.
I home school and I work athome, so we see each other a day
(16:35):
.
Mom, is there anything I can dofor you?
Can I help you?
What do you need done, mom?
And that is such an amazinggift and I just wanted to say
thank you and that's just fromobeying, setting those
boundaries, making it clear andjust following God's lead.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
And so people need to know there's hope and that's a
miracle.
You've got a child that's goingfrom just bizarre down to in
control, so I'll praise God.
And so what is the fear?
Oh, that child, or that poorchild, are you gonna, you know,
hurt his self-esteem, or you'regonna, let me tell you something
they get self-esteem when theylose himself.
(17:19):
It is all about losingthemselves and then looking out
to someone else.
He was full of self and hewanted what he wanted when he
wanted attention, he wantedwhatever, you know.
But he can only get that fromGod.
Only God can fill it up.
And so we are schooling thesekids.
We are, you know, ruining theirlives by even letting them
(17:41):
think about themselves at all.
So thank you, sonya, forsharing that.
Who else is on the line?
Speaker 1 (17:46):
On Wednesday, may 19th 2004, law enforcement
officials raided the Way DownWorkshop warehouse in Franklin,
tennessee, just before lunchtime.
By the time the press arrived,all seven members of the
Franklin Police's detectivesdivision, chief Jackie Moore,
deputy Chief Alice Siegel andLieutenant Mike Jordan, were all
(18:10):
on scene.
The raid was part of acontinued investigation into the
role the teachings of remnantfellowship church played in the
death of Joseph Smith.
They collected files andcomputer discs over two days.
The search didn't yieldanything criminal, so Detective
(18:31):
Schweizer Superiors told himthere was pretty much nothing
else he could do.
He retired from Cobb County in2020 and now works as an
investigator for the BanksCounty Sheriff's Office and as a
task force officer with theDepartment of Homeland Security.
Police felt that the church hadplayed some role in Joseph's
(18:55):
death.
In an article with the New YorkTimes, corporal Brodie Stodd of
the Cobb County, georgia policesaid quote a lot of our
evidence is that they disciplinetheir children in ways the
church recommended.
It's possible that these twoparents took what they learned
to the extreme end quote InFebruary 2007, the trial of Big
(19:23):
Joseph and Sonia Smith began.
They were tried together andmembers of the remnant
fellowship got together and paidtheir legal fees.
Assistant district attorneyEleanor Dixon told the jurors
quote Joseph's body, will tellyou the story of what happened
to him.
(19:43):
There was beating after beating, after beating and then he died
.
And quote Assistant districtattorney Dixon told jurors that
Joseph was beaten by his parentsusing various objects,
including a glue stick, whichshe described as a foot-lung
(20:04):
piece of flexible material forthe use inside of a glue gun.
She said the boy was known as awild youth who had issues, but
his parents never took him to adoctor or to see a counselor.
The Cobb County medical examinerdetermined that Joseph died
(20:24):
from blows to the head and thefirst responders who responded
to the family's emergency callsaid his body was covered with
bruises.
Prosecutors stated that Josephwas locked in a wooden box and
confined to a closet for hoursat a time before he died in
October 2003.
(20:45):
Authorities say that Joseph waschronically abused and died
from a blow to the head.
The couple's attorney arguedthat Joseph did not die from the
injuries and that the medicalexaminer failed to perform
crucial tests that would havefound the actual cause of his
death.
They suggested that Joseph diedas a result of a bacterial
(21:10):
infection from chronic eczema.
Big Joseph and Sonia toldauthorities.
Joseph passed out and neverregained consciousness after the
family gathered in the kitchento participate in a prayer
session with their church.
Via the internet, the Smithcase led authorities to
(21:31):
investigate the church, thoughpolice who testified during the
couple's trial said they couldnot find a link between the
boy's death and the church'steaching about punishment.
It was found that one of thechurch's leaders had given a
talk during the February 2003women's conference where he
(21:51):
talked about having a showdownspanking with his two-year-old
daughter.
Here take a listen.
Speaker 4 (21:59):
Hey guys, this is David Martin.
I just want to give a realtwo-minute testimony just to say
that since we really have beenblessed, jennifer and I have
been blessed with this advicefrom Gwen and have applied it to
a six-year-old, a two-year-oldand an 11-month-old, and
actually much longer than that.
We've been doing it since we'veknown Gwen and since we've
(22:20):
gotten this advice, I can't tellyou what a difference it's made
.
A year ago, ourtwo-and-a-half-year-old Avery,
we had a real showdown with herand her will was just, was
ruling and enough was enough andwe had a leg spanking over and
over and over and over and overand over again and time one
(22:44):
evening, and this was after justa series of these things over a
few weeks, and we stayed on topof it for a couple, three weeks
and that has been a differentchild in this last year because
of that.
And now I can say now I can saythat I feel real confident if
she will, we're training up thatchild the way she should go and
(23:06):
she won't depart from it.
She's not going to come homedrunk at 16 years old.
She's not going to come home,you know, pregnant and and I
it's all for God, all this isfor God and it is about looking
at those children, loving Godmore than you love those
children and understanding thatyou are.
By training up these kids andapplying exactly what you've
(23:26):
learned today, you are providingmore little vessels for God to
be king, more little vesselswhere God can dwell, and you are
.
You are, like Gwen was saying,reversing the cycle of sin in
your family's generations andyou get a chance to see in them
everything godly and righteousthat you've had to beat out of
yourself.
For you know, as adults, nowyou get a chance to correct all
(23:50):
that before it ever happens.
And you will marvel in your oldage when you watch these kids
not struggle with hardlyanything.
And and I just I can justtestify as as a parent for me
and Jennifer with small childrenthat this absolutely works.
And if you will do it and do thehard thing, all you'll have to
(24:11):
do is do it for just a few weeksand then it'll get easier and
easier.
And now we hardly ever have tospank Avery because she obeys so
quickly and readily and if thatwill tries to creep back up, we
just remind her of who she isand it doesn't take but about
two minutes of that and thenthat's over again and then she's
fine.
But it is so rare now that Ijust I just praise God for it
(24:33):
and what you've gotten today isjust a drink of living water.
And if you'll just do it, justdo it and and seek after it and
put it into practice, you willbe so blessed and you'll never
have to deal with this hardlyever again.
It'll hardly ever creep up everagain.
And if it ever did, you justpop it back down.
And the good news is, if thegod will rule and you will get
(24:55):
to correct everything that youever did wrong in your own life,
you'll get to see it happen inrighteousness and truth in your
own kids lives and break thatcurse of sin in your, in your
family's generation.
Speaker 1 (25:09):
Remnant leaders have supported Big Joseph and Sonia
throughout the case, with somemembers even attending the
couple's trial in Georgia.
They believe the Smiths claimsthat Joseph's death was an
accident and have helped pay fortheir lawyers.
Sonia told the police that shenormally gave the children their
(25:30):
whippings in increments of 10blows each and that Joseph had
gotten several of those whippingsessions on the day of his
death.
The police reported that theSmiths locked Joseph in his room
to pray to a picture of Jesuson the ceiling and in a closet
for days and even weeks he wasgiven only a bucket for a toilet
(25:54):
.
An older son sometimes heldJoseph down while the parents
beat him with implements.
Police officer Stephen Gaynorsaid Sonia quote jokingly told
me if he ever goes to thehospital they're gonna drag
mommy and daddy to jail.
End quote.
Another police officer saidthat the father told him after
(26:18):
Joseph's death quote I'm notgoing to lie to you, he's
bruised.
End quote.
The police wrote in a reportthe parents showed no remorse
and were very defensive abouttheir religion and its
recommended discipline methods.
Joseph's older brother, michaelBooth, who was 16 at the time,
(26:41):
testified in court that Josephwas frequently hit with footlong
glue sticks, coat hangers,belts and an extension cord.
Everyone in the family wasafraid of him because he was so
destructive and claimed to be asoldier of the devil, especially
when the family engaged inreligious activity.
(27:04):
Michael testified that onOctober 8th 2003 the family was
watching a webcast churchservice of remnant fellowship
when Joseph began quotescreaming, cursing and carrying
on Every time we prayed.
He tried to do things to mylittle brother, james.
End quote.
The Smiths told Michael to putJoseph inside of a wood-lined
(27:28):
chest.
After Michael got Joseph in thechest, he tied the lid closed
with an extension cord becauseJoseph kept popping his head up.
Michael testified that Josephcontinued cursing inside the box
, yelling quote I'm going tokill all you mother-effors when
(27:49):
I get out.
James is the first on my list.
I'm going to slit his throatend quote.
10 or 15 minutes later hestopped yelling.
Michael cut the extension cordand opened the chest.
Joseph was unresponsive.
Big Joseph ran to the chest,pulled his son out, attempted
(28:12):
resuscitation and called 911.
Joseph died in the hospital thenext day.
Medical examiners testified thatJoseph died of blunt force,
trauma in acute and chronicabuse and positional
asphyxiation.
All topsy photos showed hisbody covered with abrasions and
(28:36):
bruises, as well as brainswelling, citing a high white
cell count in Joseph's blood.
Two doctors testified for thedefense that Joseph died of an
infection rather than bluntforce trauma.
A dermatologist testified thatthe marks on Joseph's skin were
because of eczema rather thanbruising.
(29:00):
During the trial, laura Boonetestified to when she babysat
Joseph for the Smiths six monthsbefore Joseph died.
Laura was 14 at the time,worked as a babysitter and made
a report of child abuse aboutJoseph without knowing his name.
She found out it was him whenshe saw his face on TV during a
(29:24):
news report of his death.
Laura, whose family is not partof Remnant Fellowship, says she
started babysitting for thechurch families because her
neighbors were members.
Laura and her friends oftenbabysat kids in a large group
while their parents attendedchurch gatherings.
(29:45):
Laura says she met Joseph inApril 2003 when the Smith family
attended a church event.
She saw Joseph crying in acorner so she asked his father
what she should do.
She said quote.
His father hit his fist intohis hand and he said hit him
hard.
I was shocked.
(30:06):
I said no End.
Quote.
She says his father then tookJoseph into the next room to
discipline him.
Quote.
I don't know what he was doinghitting, spanking, whatever, but
we could all hear thathappening.
End quote.
The next day Laura and hermother went to Tennessee's
(30:30):
Department of Children Servicesto make a child abuse report.
She said quote I didn't knowthe child's name or the dad's
name.
I knew they were from Atlanta,but there wasn't enough detail
for DCS to do a proper follow-upinvestigation.
End quote Laura describedJoseph as pretty rambunctious
(30:53):
with behavioral issues thatprofessionals might have best
addressed.
Here's a clip from Laura'stestimony during the trial.
Speaker 6 (31:02):
I just want to ask you a couple of questions about
the defendant, joseph Smith inthis case.
Do you know Joseph?
Speaker 5 (31:09):
Yes, and how do you know him?
He goes to a room in fellowshipand I babysat for the kid, his
kid, joseph.
Speaker 6 (31:19):
Smith at the Wadow Workshop.
Okay, I'm going to back up alittle bit and ask you is
babysitting something that youregularly do now?
Speaker 3 (31:28):
No, ma'am.
Speaker 6 (31:28):
Did you regularly do it?
In 2003?
Yes, and how often would yousay you babysat for a remnant
fellowship?
Speaker 5 (31:37):
At least a dozen times over the whole course that
I babysat for them.
What is remnant fellowship?
I see it as a church based offof the Wadow.
Speaker 6 (31:48):
Workshop that go and channel in the started.
Now you said you babysat forthem a number of times.
When you babysat for defendantJoseph Smith son, where did that
actual babysitting?
Speaker 5 (32:03):
take place.
It was at the Wadow Workshop.
Where was that On Seaboard Lanein Brooklyn, Tennessee.
Speaker 6 (32:08):
That's in Tennessee.
Yes, do you rememberapproximately when you babysat
for him?
Speaker 5 (32:15):
This was in the spring, around Easter time, and
what year?
2003.
And do you see Joseph Smithhere today, the dad Joseph Smith
?
Yes, okay, where is he, sorry?
Okay, can you describe whathe's wearing?
A suit with the red tie.
Speaker 6 (32:38):
And when you saw him around Easter of 2003,.
Can you describe the place yousaw him?
Speaker 5 (32:46):
It was in the Wadow Workshop.
There was a big area with likea sink and rocking tears and
nursery type area, and then offto the side was a bigger room
for the kids to play, and thenwe were in that bigger room
where all the kids were.
How many kids were youbabysitting at that time?
That day there were probably 20plus kids.
(33:07):
So it's daytime or nighttimebabysitting.
Speaker 6 (33:11):
This is in the daytime, and how many
babysitters were there with thechildren.
Speaker 5 (33:16):
I would say seven or eight of us when you babysat
before for this for the RedneckFellowship?
Speaker 6 (33:24):
would that be typical of a number of babysitters?
Yes, ma'am, do you rememberfirst seeing the defendant,
joseph Smith, and child JosephSmith?
Speaker 5 (33:36):
Yes, Would you tell the jury what you saw?
They walked in and, JosephSmith, the baby was in or the
kid was in the corner crying,and I thought maybe his dad had
like a toy or some food orsomething that would make the
kid feel better.
So I asked him what he wouldwant me to do if the kid
(33:58):
continued to cry when the dadwas leaving.
And he just looked at me andsaid hit him hard.
And I said, sir, I'm not goingto hit your son.
What do you want me to do?
And he said, no, really hit himhard.
And I just said that I wouldn't.
Speaker 6 (34:12):
And so he took him into.
Let me stop you right there.
You made an emotion with yourfist in your hand.
Is that the emotion that thisdefendant made?
Yes, ma'am, what happened afteryou said you would?
Speaker 5 (34:24):
not hit his child.
There was a smaller, maybeSunday school type room off to
the side of the nursery and hetook Joseph in there and he was
still crying and we can justhear him hitting him and the son
just wailing.
Now how do you know he was?
He said you heard something.
What did you hear?
Either spanking or hitting, butvery hard hitting or spanking.
(34:47):
Can you describe the sound?
Just a very hard like hit andthen a very wild scream and cry
from Joseph Smith, the son.
Did you see the child and thedad after they left that area?
Yes, ma'am, they came back outand the son stayed the remainder
(35:07):
of the afternoon with us.
Did you ever speak with thechild?
I asked him if he was okay, buthe was still just crying
throughout the he never.
He wasn't very talkative.
He didn't really seem to answerany of my questions.
Did you ever see these twopeople?
Speaker 1 (35:24):
again.
No, ma'am Joseph would havebeen 12 on Friday, February 16,
2007.
In her closing arguments,wednesday the 14th Assistant
District Attorney Dixon sanghappy birthday to Joseph,
leaving the defendants in tears.
(35:45):
Coincidentally, the juryconvicted Big Joseph and Sonia
Smith on Joseph's birthday afelony murder, involuntary
manslaughter, first degreecruelty to children, aggravated
assault, false imprisonment andreckless conduct.
Church members paid for theirbail and legal defense and
(36:10):
crowded the courtroom.
Church leaders said the child'sdeath was an accident from
hitting his head on the banister.
They described the Smith'sdiscipline methods as
traditional spankings andgroundings of the child to his
bedroom and denied they wereabusive.
When sentencing the Smiths onMarch 27, 2007, superior Court
(36:34):
Judge James Badaford said quoteI think it's serious enough
where you should receive themaximum punishment and it should
be on top of life end, quotethe Smiths looked at each other
but said nothing.
As Judge Badaford imposed thesentence, about two dozen
(36:54):
supporters were in the courtroomand several friends spoke on
the couple's behalf, describingthem as kind.
Judge Badaford called theletters of support for the
Smiths amazing but said thesupporters likely didn't have
all the details.
Although the church wasinvestigated after Joseph's
death, police testified duringthe couple's trial they could
(37:18):
not find any link between theboy's death and the religious
institution.
Ted Anger, one of the church'sleaders, said they still believe
the Smiths are innocent.
Outside of the courtroom, tedsaid quote we will support the
Smiths in any way we can.
End.
(37:38):
Quote the Smiths filed a motionin Cobb County for a new trial,
arguing the ineffectiveassistance of counsel of their
defense lawyer, but that wasdenied on October 8th 2009.
An appeal was then brought tothe Supreme Court of Georgia.
This appeal was denied onNovember 8, 2010, when the
(38:03):
Supreme Court of Georgia, on a5-2 vote, upheld the murder
convictions and life prisonsentences given to both Joseph
and Sonia Smith.
The dissenting opinions citedin proper conduct of the trial
judge for allowing unfair andpotentially prejudicial
(38:23):
theatrics by the prosecution togain an outcome based on passion
rather than on the facts of thecase.
They also cited inadequate juryinstructions and definitions
for some specific charges.
A petition was filed onFebruary 7, 2011 with the United
(38:44):
States Supreme Court asking theSupreme Court to review the
decisions made in the lowercourts.
This petition was also deniedon June 27, 2011.
Remnant Fellowship runs andmaintains the Smiths or Innocent
Page.
Currently, sonia isincarcerated at the Arendelle
(39:08):
State Prison, whereas Joseph isserving his sentence at the
McCann State Prison.
At this time, big Joseph andSonia Smith are still members of
Remnant Fellowship Church.
According to the the Smiths orInnocent Web page, remnant
Fellowship started prisonministries where the Smiths
(39:30):
participate in prison workshops.
And, after much debate withinmyself, this is where we're
going to end the episode.
I really wanted to give Josephhis own episode because
highlighting the innocent livesaffected during this time is so
important.
Next week we will finish upwith Gwen Shamblin and Remnant
(39:53):
Fellowship Church.
We're going to go back in orderwith more major events that
happened with Gwen and theChurch.
Be sure to follow on Instagramat CrimeConnoisseurs.
If you have a case suggestion,click the link in the bio, fill
out the form and I'll look intoit, or you can send an email to
(40:14):
CrimeConnoisseurs at gmailcomand for the subject line, put
case suggestion.
In the meantime, keep it classeconosores and I'll catch you on
the next case.
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