Pamela Smart

I almost exclusively watch the Investigation Discovery (ID) channel on television. In fact, currently my DVR has ten shows on it with more ready to record in the next few days. There has been a lot of advertising on the channel for an upcoming special on the Pamela Smart case to air this weekend. Normally I would wait until that show aired before I would have put this case together but to be fair I do not expect for it to reveal very much. I am actually surprised that I had not done this case already. It was a rather “sensational” case back in 1992. In fact, it was dubbed Trial of the Century at the time until the O.J. Simpson case knocked it down the line a bit. It has been twenty-seven years since this case came into the national spotlight and in my opinion the same spiel is being said by Pamela Smart, her family and her supporters. Every few years there seems to be a special made about the case and I admit that I watch most of them, although I have to say I am not sure why. And yet, my DVR is set to record the three part (two night) show set to air this coming weekend.

In 1990 twenty-two year old Pamela Smart lived in Derry New Hampshire with her husband, Gregg, an insurance agent. Pamela worked in the nearby city of Hampton at a high school where she was the “media coordinator.” At the time many of the news outlets proclaimed she was a “teacher” likely for the sensationalism associated with it at the time but that was not true. In essence she was a glorified librarian. On the night of May 1^st Pamela came home from a late meeting at work to find her husband dead just inside the door of their home. She went to a neighbors home and the police were called. Investigators thought that it appeared as if Gregg had come home and interrupted a burglary.

It did not take too long before Pamela's behavior made the investigators take notice. It seemed that she was more than willing to get in front of any media camera that was available and while it is often said we all grieve differently, no one thought she seemed too overly upset. Then about two weeks after the murder a man named Vance Lattime Sr. went to the Derry police department with his .38 caliber pistol. He had come to believe that this was the weapon that had been used in the murder of Gregg Smart. Around the same time an anonymous tip was called in that teenager, Cecelia Pierce knew who had murdered Gregg.

Investigators reached Cecelia and spoke to her about what she knew. She seemed to be reluctant to get involved and in fairness was likely scared. Cecelia would eventually tell investigators that it was true, she did know who had killed Gregg Smart, and she knew why. According to Cecelia, Pamela had had an affair with fifteen year old William “Billy” Flynn. It was Flynn, along with some of his friends who had murdered Gregg Smart but Pamela had been pulling the strings in the background. She had convinced Billy that the only way they could be together was if Gregg was out of the picture and divorce was not an option. It is not clear if Billy also knew that Pamela stood to gain nearly $150,000 in life insurance proceeds.

Investigators began looking at this angle and they convinced Cecelia to wear a wire and talk to Pamela. It would be these conversations and the testimony of five teenagers that would put Pamela behind bars, likely until the day she dies. On August 1, 1990 Pamela Smart was arrested and charged with first degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and witness tampering. Also arrested were Billy Flynn, Patrick “Pete” Randall, Vance “J.R” Lattime Jr. and Raymond Fowler.

Pamela Wojas had met Gregg Smart at a New Years Eve Party in 1986. It was said she was drawn to him because of his love of heavy metal music and his long hair to go with it. If you were alive and remember the 1980's you know it was all about the hair. Both boys and girls not only had a lot of it but a lot of the time it was “big” too. I am a girl of the 80's and let me tell you, hairspray was our best friend in life. When it came to the rockers of the day … Bon Jovi, Twisted Sister, Night Ranger... etc... they sported the hair too. The couple would marry in 1989 and it was said that Pamela was upset when Gregg cut off all of his hair and went into the insurance business with his dad, William.

Pamela has always admitted having the affair with Billy Flynn. Then again there was really too much evidence for her to ever deny it. Billy had pictures of Pamela in a bikini and other attire, or lack there of, that she had given him, and it appears that several people knew about the affair. Billy would claim that he was a virgin when he met and began having sex with Pamela, something her family has attempted to dispute, although it appears they are only speculating. Investigators, and later prosecutors, would come to believe that she had seduced Billy, who was totally enamored with her and that she had threatened to stop having sex with him unless he killed Gregg. Pamela continues to deny that this is what occurred. She has claimed that she had already broken up with Billy and even allegedly told Gregg about the affair. According to Pamela, Gregg was obviously not happy but he had been unfaithful at some point in their relationship and the two had decided to work on their marriage. Her claim is that Billy Flynn recruited his friends to help him and that it was their idea alone, without her knowledge to kill Gregg.

All four of the boys would take plea deals with the State. Some of them required that they testified against Pamela at her trial. Billy Flynn would admit that it was he that had shot and killed Gregg Smart. He would plead guilty to second degree murder and was given a life sentence that called for no parole for forty years. He would be able to have twelve years deferred if he behaved while in prison. He would spend much of his prison time in a prison in Maine. While there he earned his GED. In 2007 he sought a sentence reduction and even the prosecutor from Pamela's case, Paul Maggiotto, gave his recommendation. It was said that Billy had vowed not to ask for a reduction until he had served sixteen years. He felt he should serve as many years in prison as he had lived outside of prison. The reduction was denied but the board did reduce his parole eligibility by three years making him eligible in 2015. He was released on June 4, 2015 and given a lifetime parole. He had married while in prison and it was said in 2014 he lived with his wife in Maine. In an article talking about the twenty-fifth anniversary of Pamela's trial a reporter reached out to him. According to the reporter Billy seemed very cordial, although he respectively declined speaking about himself, the trial or the crime other than to continue to express remorse for what he had done. It was not until the reporter turned on a camera that Billy seemed to get upset and ordered the reporter from his property. A former parole board member has stated that she believes that comments she made to him upon his release may have contributed to that behavior. She had warned him that this was a sensational case and to avoid falling into the hands of the media because it would harm him in moving forward in his life.

Pete Randall also pleaded guilty to second degree murder. He admitted to holding down Gregg Smart while Billy Flynn had shot him. Like Billy he was sentenced to life without parole for forty years although also had the opportunity to have twelve years deferred based on his behavior. Like Billy he was housed in a prison in Maine, most information says they were housed in the same prison. In 2009 his parole eligibility was reduced by three years. Some information claims that he was released on the same day (June 4, 2015) as Billy Flynn but others indicate he may have been released in April of that year. He too was given lifetime parole.

Vance “J.R.” Lattime Jr. had admitted to driving the teens to the Smart home and waiting outside for them. He was given a life sentence with parole in thirty years. Like Billy and Pete he was allowed the twelve years deferred. In 2005 his parole eligibility was shaved another three years making him eligible for parole that year, which was granted.

Raymond Fowler had also waited at the car with J.R. And was sentenced to thirty years on charges of conspiracy to commit murder and attempted burglary. He was paroled in 2003 but in 2004 he violated his parole and went back to prison. He was released in June of 2005.

That just left Pamela Smart and she was going to fight her charges to the end... maybe literally considering she is still fighting it seems. I cannot say that all four of the boys testified against her, however, Billy and Pete did for sure. Then there was also the testimony of Cecilia Pierce, as well as the tapes in which were made when she made a wire. Pamela's family has argued that the tapes were not audible enough to know for certain what was said. The prosecutor states that the tapes were sent to an FBI lab in which they were “cleaned” up and that both copies of the tapes as well as transcripts were given to the defense attorney's.

Prosecutors would say that these tapes are what pretty much “nailed” Pamela. One particular quote from Pamela to Cecelia has been played over and over through the years.... “If you stay quiet, if the boys stay quiet, we'll be fine. If you don't; we're going to jail for the rest of our lives.” It was this quote, among others in the conversation that led to the charge of witness tampering. While Pamela's mother, Linda, would continue the fight that the tapes were not clear enough to know what was said, Pamela does not seem to dispute that she said exactly what the prosecutor stated she did. However, she has always attempted to say that she had heard rumors that Cecelia knew what had happened and that the boys were possibly involved but that she was doing her own investigation and trying to gather evidence before she went to the police. No one, but Pamela, seems to have bought that theory.

The trial was one of the first that was televised and over the last, nearly three decades, one of the most memorable moments was when Billy Flynn testified. Not only did he tell his side of the story, taking complete responsibility for shooting Gregg Smart, he did so while crying on the stand, something few saw from Pamela, ever. In fact, she was dubbed “The Ice Princess” at her trial. While again, Pamela's supporters claim this was an act on Billy's part in order to save his own skin, few others believe that to be the case. I mentioned earlier that the prosecutor in the case had written a letter in 2007 recommending that Billy Flynn's sentence be reduced and much of that came from the fact that he felt Billy's remorse was genuine. In fact, it seems that the Smart family also felt he was genuinely remorseful, that is not to say that they agreed in a reduced sentence. They too believed that he had been manipulated by Pamela, but in the end his actions were his own and he took Gregg Smart's life.

Today Pamela, and her supporters continue to argue that she did not influence or manipulate Billy Flynn into murdering Gregg Smart. If I have heard her say it once, I have heard it a million times, “I am in prison for a crime I did not commit.” In fact, I have seen it in the previews for the new show coming out. An article from 2014 stated that Pamela's mother, Linda Wojas, was publishing a book to get the “true” story out but I have been unable to confirm if this ever happened. They all seem to argue that the publicity surrounding the case is the reason that she was convicted. On the other hand, Pamela's next argument is that all of the boys who were also convicted have been paroled and only she remains in prison.

Pamela has been held in a New York jail for most of her imprisonment. Unlike most states that hold prisoners in other states you can find Pamela on the Department of Corrections website for New Hampshire. It shows her minimum and maximum date as being the same.... February 24, 2090.

Pamela has not had it easy in prison. In October of 1996 she was severely beaten by two female inmates who believed she had “snitched” on them and told of their relationship. She was beaten so bad that a plastic plate had to be put in the left side of her face. The two inmates were convicted of second degree assault and sent to separate prisons. In 2003 the National Enquirer published what were called “scantily clad” pictures of Pamela from prison. She filed a complaint claiming that the pictures were taken by a prison guard who had raped her. In 2004 she and another infamous prisoner, Carolyn Warmus, sued prison officials claiming sexual harassment and sexual assault by a corrections officer who they claimed talked them into posing for the pictures that the Enquirer had published. In 2009 she was awarded $23,875 from the state of New York.

Throughout the trial and for many years after, Gregg's parents, Judith and William were very visible and spoke to the media often. I looked to see where they are now. Judith died in 1998 and in 2010 William died of cancer. They are both buried with Gregg and they all share a tombstone. It appears that at least one of their sons has continued their fight against Pamela and keeping his brother's memory alive.

I do have to say there is one thing that Pamela Smart has said over the years that I agree with. She has mentioned that Gregg has gotten lost in this. He is the victim and yet we know so much more about her and her behaviors. And yet, she says this while contributing to programs that talk about her case again and again.

***Update***
I have just finished watching the three part episode on Investigation Discovery.  Around the same time they had aired an episode of Reel Crime/Real Story and I also recorded that.  I am still watching the latter but when it spoke of the boys' arrests it brought to mind that in the first show Raymond Fowler was never mentioned.  In fact, they seemed to go to great pains to only mention the three boys and when they did mention four teenagers who testified against her the fourth was Cecelia Pierce. 

As I expected there was really nothing new being told in the story that has not been said over and over.  I did see interviews with women who were friends with Pamela and apparently continue to be friends with her and believe in her innocence but beyond that it seemed to be more of the same information with Pamela continuing to claim her innocence.