A jury on Monday found a Pittsburgh man not guilty of killing a Swissvale teen at a playground a little more than two years ago.
William Smoot, 21, of the city’s Homewood neighborhood was acquitted of homicide and other charges connected to the 2017 fatal shooting of 17-year-old Vallen Davies-Mack.
Jurors delivered their verdict after deliberating two hours Friday and through 2 p.m. Monday following a 3½-day trial in Allegheny County Court, according to District Attorney’s Office spokesman Mike Manko.
An attorney for Smoot could not immediately be reached.
Prosecutors claimed that Smoot shot and killed Davies-Mack at Collingswood playground in Swissvale on May 18, 2017.
According to investigators, Smoot and two other people were in Wilkinsburg smoking marijuana, and Smoot told them he wanted to buy more. One of the other people arranged for a deal between Smoot and Davies-Mack at the playground, which is at Denniston and Collingswood streets, according to the criminal complaint filed in the case.
A witness told police that Smoot pulled a gun on Davies-Mack when he arrived at the playground, the criminal complaint said. The person who arranged the deal told police he ran away and heard gunshots.
Police found Davies-Mack shortly after 7 a.m. when a passer-by reported an unresponsive person on the ground near the playground. He had been shot multiple times and was pronounced dead at the park.
Smoot was arrested by U.S. Marshals on Dec. 6, 2017, in Pittsburgh’s Hill District and was charged with homicide, robbery, reckless endangerment and firearms violations. He was acquitted of all charges.
