Ep.39 - Derrick Robie - Great Lakes True Crime

Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Crimatorium translates to a place where crimeresides. Your host, Madeline, guides
the listener through sensitive topics such asmurder, domestic abuse, child neglect,
missing persons, and more. Takethe next step and subscribe to Crimatorium via
your favorite podcast platform. Crimatorium isalso available on YouTube. Join me in

(00:27):
the Place where Crime Resides. OnAugust second, nineteen ninety three, four
year old Derreck Roby was walking aloneon a short track from his home in
Savona, New York, to anearby day camp. Before he made it

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to the camp, however, thefour year old was lured into nearby woods
and murdered. The entire communities searchedfor six days to identify whatever monster it
was that would be capable of sucha horrific crime. When the killer was
identified, though, the community wasshocked to find out who it was from

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the south shore of Lake Erie.This is Great Lakes True Crime. Savona,

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New York is a very small,somewhat rural town with a population of
less than eight hundred people. Itis nestled in western New York State,
near the Finger Lakes region, notfar from the better known towns of Watkins
Glen, which is known for apopular state park and auto racing track in
Ithaca, which is home to CornellUniversity in Ithaca College. When little Derek

(02:14):
was found in the woods near hishouse that August day, the people of
Savona assumed there was a monster lurkingamongst them. Instead, they got a
young boy barely five feet tall,with red hair and a piece of tape
holding his glasses together. Yes,the monster lurking through the community was thirteen

(02:35):
years old and weighed less than ahundred pounds. His name is Eric Smith.
In Despite his age, he wastried as an adult for second degree
murder. The age of the killercame as a massive shock to the small
town, not only because of hisage, but also because his family was
a staple of the community. Theyhad been in Savona for generations. Eric's

(02:59):
grand father served on the village counciland his dad coached Little league baseball.
Needless to say, this brought outmany emotions in the people of Savona.
They felt terrible for Derek and wantedto hate his killer, but it was
difficult to hate the thirteen year oldboy that lives down the street. It

(03:22):
all started on the morning of Augustsecond, nineteen ninety three, little Derek
Roby set off to walk to apark just a few hundred yards from his
home. Although Derek's mother, Doreenusually watched her son until he met up
with the other children, she didn'tthat day because her other son needed her
attention. But Derek's friends didn't goto the park that morning, and when

(03:46):
Doreen Roby went to pick him uplater, she was told that he never
showed up to camp that day.She then called police to report her son
missing. Unfortunately, Derek's lifeless bodywas found or that afternoon. It appeared
that he had been lured to awooded area about halfway between his house and
the park and bludgeoned to death witha rock or some other blunt object.

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It was immediately clear that his deathwas not an accident. New York State
Police led the investigation into Derek's murderand interviewed pretty much everyone in the village,
including Eric. Although Eric didn't immediatelystand out as a suspect, some
members of his own family were troubledby his inconsistent story. For example,

(04:34):
at first, Eric first said hehad not seen Derek that day, but
later admitted that he had. Theconcern was real enough that one of Eric's
family members. It's not clear whocontacted police with their suspicions six days after
the murder. The following day,the thirteen year old admitted that he had

(04:56):
in fact killed Derek. His grandfatherwas there and recalled Eric, saying I'm
sorry, Mom, I'm sorry Ikilled that little boy. He was then
charged with second degree murder. Thetwo boys hadn't known each other very well.
They lived on opposite sides of townand didn't have many previous interactions other

(05:20):
than some acquaintance through the summer daycamp. At first, the village of
Savona looks like a slice of smalltown Americana. I visited it recently and
can attest to that, but ithas had its share of tragedy as well.
Several years prior to Derek's murder,Savona was the site of a murder

(05:40):
suicide, as well as the tragicdeath of two young women who were killed
by a drunk driver. That weekbetween the killing and the arrest could be
described as a healthy mixture of fearand grief. Kids stayed locked up at
home instead of playing outside, aspeople naturally sust that a killer was among
them. Given the large number ofchildren that normally walked to the day camp.

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It seemed that someone would have noticeda complete stranger. Yet it was
still assumed that the killer was atroubled adult or maybe an older teenager.
At least we wanted it to bean older male, said Laurie Elliott,
a waitress at the Samona Diner.And we wanted to see the guy sentenced
to the maximum. Then we findout it's a thirteen year old boy who

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touched a lot of people's lives here. Derreck Roby, more commonly known as
DJ, was four years and tenmonths old when he died. He was
the older son of Doreen and DaleRoby. He was described as a real
live wire, someone who had ahello for anyone that passed him by.
Like many boys that age, heloved his sports, especially t ball and

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basketball. The bright blue swing setbehind his house even had a little basketball
hoop attached to it. After thearrest of Eric Smith was announced, Derek's
mother, Doreen released a public statementwhich read quote, it is now time
for us to start over as ourone and a half year old son doesn't
understand why his brother isn't riding withhim in the station wagon or eating cereal

(07:18):
with him in the morning. Savonanow means more than just a town,
as we have felt every tear dropfrom mourners end quote. After that,
she donated some money to the locallibrary, asking that they used the funds
to buy books about bugs and snakes, things that Derek was interested in.

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So the obvious question was why wouldthirteen year old Eric Smith commit such a
horrible crime. Well, in someways, Eric was the polar opposite of
Derek, who was outgoing and popular. While Eric was mostly quiet and a
loaner. Derek was a big boyfor his age. Eric was the smallest
boy in his class. Derek seemedhappy, Eric not so much. A

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neighbor of the Smith family claimed thatEric had intentionally killed the family cat.
Local students said he smoked cigarettes andpicked fights, usually with smaller kids,
but he didn't avoid the bigger kidseither. He had a keen interest in
Stephen King horror novels. As forhome life, he lived with his mother,
stepfather, and a younger sister ina two story house. Both parents

(08:31):
were active in the community and therewere no reports of any abuse or mistreatment
in the home. Eric had beenheld back twice in school, He was
only in the fifth grade at thirteen, but he wasn't known to have been
much of a troublemaker. The motherof Eric's best friend described him as a

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quiet, polite kid who would openedthe car door for her and was always
eager to help her on the house, even her house. Adults who knew
Eric noticed that it was very importantto Eric that they accepted him. That
was part of his eagerness to alwaysbe helping out. That same friend's mother
attended the arrangement hearing and was shockedby Eric's demeanor. She said, he

(09:16):
just sat there, straight faced,with no emotion. He didn't look remorseful
or even scared. It then occurredto her that maybe none of this bothered
Eric. Maybe there was a sideto him that no one knew about,
and that's the side of Eric thatwas so mystifying. Even his parents were

(09:37):
apparently mystified. His mother was soupset by the ordeal that she had been
sedated with prescription medication. She andEric's stepfather eventually released a statement which read
quote, as a family, wecannot understand how this tragedy could happen.
All of our thoughts of Eric areof a sweet and loving boy. We

(09:58):
were asking our selves why this hashappened. We are asking ourselves how we
could have prevented this tragedy. Wehope and pray that both families in the
community can cope with this terrible situation. End quote. A few weeks after
the murder, Derek's mother was interviewedfor the nationally syndicated television program Inside Edition.

(10:24):
In that interview, Dorian Roby expressedher profuse anger and a desire for
punishment for Eric Smith. This child, this thing has to pay, she
said, and went on to say, he does not deserve to ride a
bike again. He does not deserveto play with children again. It took
me eighteen hours to get Derek intothis world, and it took that little

(10:45):
whatever he has, five minutes totake him out. I am so angry.
I am so angry about it.I can't tell you. One month
after the murder, on September nineteenninety three, Eric was indicted on the
charge of second degree murder by aSteuben County, New York grand jury.

(11:09):
Eight days later, on September tenth, nineteen ninety three, Eric pleaded not
guilty. His defense attorney argued thatEric was not mentally competent to stand trial,
essentially saying anyone that would commit sucha horrible crime can't be in a
rational state of mind. The followingmonth, a psychiatrist hired by Eric's lawyer

(11:30):
examined Eric and said the team lackedcriminal responsibility for the death, but was
mentally competent to stand trial. Healso concluded that Eric suffered from depression and
other disorders. That psychiatrist, doctorStephen P. Herman, from New York
City, asserted that Smith was bornwith fundamental problems which allowed him to develop

(11:52):
a sadistic side that he could notcontrol. This was not a premeditated murder,
Herman said, but a tragic resultof Eric's pathological rage. Doctor Herman,
however, also added that Eric hadnot shown signs of the disorder during
the year he had been confined thatthe Monroe County Children's Detention Center in Rochester,

(12:16):
New York, while awaiting trial.The trial began in July nineteen ninety
four. Eric's defense attorney, KevinBradley, quickly claimed that Eric was not
responsible for the murder by reason ofmental disease or defect. During the trial,
doctor Herman, the psychiatrist hired bythe defense testified that Eric has a

(12:37):
sadistic side that he could not control. He claimed that this uncontrollable stadistic side
was brought on by his mother's useof tridion while pregnant. Tridion is a
drug used to control seizures for peoplewith epilepsy. It was first introduced in
nineteen forty seven, but was largelydiscontinued in the mid nineteen sixties because of

(13:00):
its links with birth defects and fetaldamage. The defense attorney Bradley also cited
a history of alcoholism and depression inEric's family history, and purported that Eric's
stepfather quote probably hit Eric much morethan he admits unte. They tried to
invoke an insanity plea and say thatEric was not criminally responsible for his actions.

(13:26):
Basically, the defense argued that thebrutality of the killing and the overkill
involved showed that something must be seriouslymentally wrong with Eric. For sure,
the killing was far more brutal thanI am describing here. I certainly will
not get into the graphic details.Quote. The things Eric did to Derek

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Roby are horrible, the attorney said, but experience tells you he did not
appreciate the consequences of his acts.That was Eric's defense attorney. Derek's mother,
Doreen, provided emotional testimony during thetrial. She recalled sending Derek to
summer camp that morning, and thoughshe normally went outside to watch him walk

(14:09):
to the rerec center at the fieldat the end of the street, she
said she was distracted that morning byher infant son, Dalton, who was
crying with sore gums, so Dereksaid he was okay to make the walk
by himself. She sent him offwith his packed lunch of a bologny sandwich,
a banana, kool aid, anda couple homemade peanut butter cookies.

(14:33):
When Steuben County District Attorney John Tunneydisplayed the bag in court, missus Roby
tearfully confirmed that it was in factDerek's. As she went on to talk
about what a sweet, funny,and loving voy Derek was. The defense
objected, after which Steuben County JudgeDonald Purple interrupted Missus Roby's testimony. He

(14:56):
reminded juries to set aside their naturalsympathies and consider only the evidence, although
that must be a tall order forjurors in a situation like this. Eric's
defense included a string of character witnesses, most of whom talked about how well
behaved, polite, and helpful Ericwas both at home and out in the
community. But in the end,it wasn't enough. On August sixteenth,

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nineteen ninety four, the jury foundEric Smith guilty of second degree murder in
the killing of four year old DerekRoby. As Eric's mother Tammy and stepfather
Ted Smith stood in the courtroom appearingshocked while crying and holding each other,
the jurors left the courtroom without comment. They deliberated for only seven hours before

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reaching their verdict. Eric showed absolutelyno emotion prior to deliberations. The judge
spent about ninety minutes explaining to jurorshow Eric could be found guilty of either
second degree murder, first degree manslaughter, or second degree manslaughter. Had the

(16:06):
jurors fouln that Eric was suffering froma mental disease or was under extreme emotional
disturbance when he killed Derek, theverdict could have been reduced to manslaughter and
the case would have been remanded tofamily court in the juvenile justice system,
but it seems the juries did notbuy that insanity defense. About a month

(16:30):
after the guilty verdict was delivered,Eric's attorney filed emotion to vacate the murder
conviction, arguing that the prosecutor coachDerek's mother to give answers that would appeal
to the sympathetic side of the jurors. The defense also said the prosecution should
have provided them with information about interviewsState police investigators had with CBS News,

(16:52):
which aired in an episode of theTV show forty eight Hours. The judge,
however, refused to grant a newtrial. On November seventh, nineteen
ninety four, Eric Smith was sentencedto nine years to life in prison,
which was the maximum term allowable underNew York state law for Eric's second degree
murder conviction. Derek's mother had asimple statement after the sentencing, quote,

(17:18):
we got what we came for.Under the sentence, Eric would remain in
juvenile facilities until age eighteen, andthen transferred to state prison seven months later.
In June nineteen ninety five, EricSmith appealed his murder conviction. He
was now fifteen years old this time. Defense attorney Kevin Bradley argued that the

(17:41):
prosecutor mishandled the case, and Ericshould be cleared by reason of mental disease
or defect. The case was heardby a New York State appeals court,
which upheld the conviction. It wasthen appealed to the New York State Supreme
Court in Albany, which refused tohear the appeal. No reason was given
for denying the request. Moving onto August nineteen ninety seven, Eric Smith

(18:08):
requested a new trial. This time, the argument was that the nineteen ninety
four trial was tainted because his lawyerwas well incompetent. The request for a
new trial was denied by the samejudge who presided over the original trial in
Steuben County Court, Donald G.Purple. Smith would go on to exhaust

(18:30):
all of his appeals and other legaloptions, and he spent years in prison.
After nine years though he was eligiblefor parole. In a two thousand
and four parole board hearing, Smithadmitted that it felt good to kill Derek
because instead of me being hurt,I was hurting somebody else, he said.

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He also admitted if he hadn't beencharged back in nineteen ninety three,
and he probably would have killed again, becoming a serial killer. Smith's parole
was denied in two thousand and four. In a two thousand and nine interview
with CBS news affiliate w e NYTV, Smith said he hoped to become a
counselor so he could help other kidswho were bullied like he was. My

(19:17):
anger wasn't directed at Derek at all, he explained. It was directed at
all the other guys that used topick on me. He also said that
he totally understood why the Roby familydid not want him to be granted parole,
saying I did kill Derek, andfor that, you know, I'm
sorry. If I could switch placeswith him and take the grave for him
to live, I'd do it ina second. The explanation for the murder

(19:44):
was that he suddenly snapped after yearsof being bullied, picked on for his
red hair, freckles, and glasses. Smith had a parole hearing every two
years, which had to have beena nightmare for Derek's family. Even though
the parole board repeatedly, he decidedto keep him locked up. That was
until October, when Smith was finallygranted parole. He was released from prison

(20:08):
in February twenty two after establishing apermanent residence. He had served twenty eight
years in prison and was a fortytwo year old man when given his release.
He's now a freeman living in Queens, New York. About the release,
Derek's mother Doreen said, quote,I don't let him take space in

(20:30):
my head. I do not focuson where he is what he's doing,
because I don't care as long ashe's not near friends and family. Derreck
Roby is buried in Siemens Cemetery inSavona, New York, not far from
the elementary school where he was aboutto enter kindergarten. In the coffin with
him are some of the things heloved. A bat, a baseball,

(20:53):
and a Teddy Bear. And that'sall for this episode of Great Lakes True
Crime. Big thank you to theshow supporters who bought me a virtual cup
of coffee through the website at podpagedot com slash Great Lakes True Crime.
And also many thanks to those whorecently left five star reviews on their podcast

(21:14):
app. If you have not lefta five star review, I could really
use your help with that, soplease do so. If you have the
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Great Lakes True Crime. You canalso check out links in the show notes
for our social media handles, theweb address, and the show merchandise page.
This has been Steve, your hostand producer. Thanks for listening,

(21:37):
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Ep.39 - Derrick Robie

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