Man sentenced for shooting tot
'He put that gun to the baby's head'
An Evergreen man found guilty for the shooting death of his girlfriend's 19-month-old daughter was sentenced Tuesday morning to 25 years at Montana State Prison.
Flathead County District Court Judge Stewart E. Stadler ordered Dwayne Scott Smail, 24, to serve the maximum sentence for negligent homicide plus an additional five years for being a persistent felony offender.
No restrictions were placed on his parole.
"This was not simply a case of a child playing with a gun," said Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan, who asked Stadler to sentence Smail to 35 years in prison with five years suspended. "He put that gun to the baby's head."
Prosecutors maintain that evidence failed to support the claim that the March 5, 2008, shooting of Korbyn Eva May Williams was an accident, and that Smail has yet to tell the truth about what really happened.
"I thought that the circumstances of the offense, what he did, coupled with his criminal history, warranted the 35 years we recommended," Corrigan said.
As a juvenile in Washington state, Smail was convicted of weapon, domestic abuse, burglary, possession of stolen property, and escape.
Defense attorney Steven N. Eschenbacher, however, asked that Stadler give Smail the opportunity "to fix what has never had a chance to be fixed."
Eschenbacher, who recommended Smail receive 20 years in prison with 10 suspended, argued that the court impose a sentence commensurate with the crime he was convicted of.
"When someone dies that has the potential of a child … there's a great need to remedy that in any way we can," said Eschenbacher, who urged Stadler to consider the potential in his client.
The court heard emotional testimony Tuesday from several of Korbyn's family members, many of whom wore shirts bearing her image.
"When you sleep at night, I want you to have the nightmares I have," said Korbyn's mother, Aimee Williams.
Carla Hayek, Korbyn's grandmother, described the pain the toddler's death has caused family members.
"You ripped holes in hundreds of people's hearts in my family, and it will never be replaced… You do not realize what you've done," Hayek said. "I want you to hurt as bad as you've caused pain for my family."
Other family members asked that Smail be punished to the full extent of the law.
"You've proven yourself to be a liar and a deceiver, and you only think of yourself," said Korbyn's great-grandmother, Patty Williams. "You said you loved her like your own. Love doesn't kill."
Sharyle Miller, Korbyn's great-aunt, told the court that what Smail did was "unforgivable."
In a short statement before his sentence was imposed, Smail expressed remorse for Korbyn's death.
"Words can not express the pain and guilt I feel for what has happened," he said. "I regret my actions for what has happened. I do want to say I'm sorry to the family. I'm sorry, Aimee."
A Flathead County jury in March 2009 deliberated three hours before finding Smail, who was on trial for deliberate homicide, guilty of the lesser murder charge.
During testimony, Smail - who originally claimed the child shot herself - admitted shooting Korbyn once in the head with a 9 mm Ruger pistol while he was taking care of her at the Montana Village apartment complex on Montana 35 in Evergreen.
Smail shared the apartment with Korbyn and her mother, who was at work at a Kalispell restaurant when the shooting occurred.
Smail told jurors he awoke to find Korbyn in a corner of the bed, holding the gun by the barrel. As he reached for the weapon, Smail said he was distracted by a light outside the studio apartment and as he grabbed for the pistol, it discharged.
But the jury also heard from several forensic experts, including a blood-spatter analyst and medical examiner, who testified that Smail actually was leaning forward holding the gun to Korbyn's head when it discharged.
Prosecutors, however, were unable to provide evidence of intent or proof that Smail knew the gun was loaded when he pulled the trigger.
Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com