Joseph Peter Smith

Overview

Joseph Peter Smith was convicted of abducting, raping and killing 11-year-old Carlie Brucia and was sentenced to death by lethal injection.

Status

On March 13, 2006, the day before Carlie’s birthday, Judge Andrew Owens condemned Smith to death by injection.

Timeline

• February 1, 2004 — Smith sat in a car in Sarasota, Florida, with a bag of cocaine and a hypodermic needle in his lap, before abducting Carlie Brucia.
• 6:15 p.m., February 1, 2004 — Carlie phoned her mother from the home of Connie Arnold at Bee Ridge and Lalani Boulevard to say she was leaving to walk home.
• 6:21 p.m., February 1, 2004 — A motion-activated security camera recorded Carlie’s abduction.
• 6:30 p.m., February 1, 2004 — When Carlie had not arrived home, her stepfather Steven Kansler called the Arnold home and went looking for Carlie.
• February 1, 2004 (before 911 call) — Carlie had been missing just 10 minutes when her mother, Susan Schorpen, called 911.
• 18 hours after February 1, 2004 — Investigators viewed the security camera footage on early Monday afternoon.
• Monday evening (after early Monday afternoon viewing) — Manatee authorities issued an Amber Alert for Carlie Brucia.
• February 5, 2004 (late in the morning) — Joseph Smith met with his brother John Smith and their mother Patricia Davis for a family meeting at Sarasota County Jail; Smith eventually confessed and offered to direct them to the body.
• February 5, 2004 (same afternoon) — John Smith and Patricia Davis drove to the Central Church of Christ, at 6221 Proctor Road, to search for the body (“Station C”).
• February 5, 2004 (evening, after phone calls) — John Smith dropped a dime on his brother by calling the FBI.
• 9 p.m., February 5, 2004 — John Smith, Mrs. Davis, Sarasota Detective Toby Davis, and FBI agents David Street and Leo Martinez returned to the church property for another search.
• near midnight, February 5, 2004 — The body of Carlie Brucia was found in a grove of Brazilian pepper trees beyond a chain-link fence.
• Fall 2005 — Smith’s murder trial took place; after two weeks of testimony, the jury convicted him of murder, kidnapping and sexual battery.
• March 15, 2006 — He was sentenced to death by lethal injection by Circuit Judge Andrew Owens.
• March 16, 2006 — The day before Carlie’s birthday, Owens condemned Smith to death by injection.
• 30 days after sentencing — Smith had 30 days to appeal the sentence and punishment meted out by the court.

Background

Joseph Smith had a history of drug addiction and depression. He was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., on March 17, 1966. Smith said he was a heroin addict by age 19 and used cocaine, crack and prescription opiate painkillers, including speed. He moved to Florida in 1991. He survived an overdose in 1993 and spent most of the following decade in jail, on probation or in drug rehab. He married Luz Castrillon and fathered three daughters.

Smith was arrested more than a dozen times in Florida, mostly for felony drug violations. He often pleaded no contest in exchange for probation, community supervision, house arrest or mandatory drug rehab. He was at times employed as a mechanic and owned or opened a car repair shop. He also had periods of being jobless and homeless.

The offence

Victim and abduction

Carlie Brucia was 11 years old and was born March 16, 1992. She was a sixth-grader at Sarasota’s McIntosh Middle School. She walked home after a sleepover with friends at the home of Connie Arnold, at Bee Ridge and Lalani Boulevard.

At about 6:15 p.m., Carlie phoned her mother, Susan Schorpen, from the Arnold home to say she was leaving to walk home. When she had not shown up by 6:30, her stepfather Steven Kansler called the Arnold home and went looking for her. Carlie had been missing about 10 minutes when Schorpen called 911. The abduction was captured by a security camera. The camera’s memory indicated it was activated by motion at precisely 6:21 p.m. on February 1, 2004.

On the video, Carlie was suddenly confronted by a man who strode toward her, grabbed her right arm, spoke to her for a few seconds, then firmly led her away, off camera. The man was later identified as Joseph Smith.

Sexual abuse, physical abuse and killing

Forensic evidence indicated that Carlie was raped vaginally and orally and was strangled by ligature, described as a garrote twisted tight around her neck. Her body was then dragged over scarring surfaces including blacktop, crushed rock and palmetto shrubs before being left in a makeshift resting place. Coroners reckoned that she had been killed on the night of her abduction.

Dr. Russell Vega, the medical examiner, said Carlie fought for her life and that he found cuts and bruises on her arms, legs and left heel.

Judge Andrew Owens later characterized the murder as conscious, pitiless, calculated and premeditated.

Investigation

Amber Alert decision and search activities

The Manatee County Sheriff’s Department declined to issue an Amber Alert initially because no one had witnessed the abduction. Schorpen was told there was no way to know whether a crime had taken place and she was told perhaps the girl had run away.

As an alternative, investigators used blood hounds and initially focused on the stepfather as a suspect. The dogs tracked Carlie Brucia’s scent from the Arnold home along Bee Ridge to Evie’s Car Wash at 4735 Bee Ridge Road, where the trail ended.

Investigators noticed a motion-activated security camera at the back of a building near Evie’s Car Wash, in a spot neighborhood kids often used as a shortcut. Police contacted the firm’s owner, Mike Evanoff, and the tape was not viewed until early Monday afternoon, about 18 hours after Carlie disappeared.

After the footage was reviewed, investigators contacted the public for tips. They received 800 tips, including several with precisely the same message.

Tips and identification of Joseph Smith

A tipster said, “The person’s name is Joe Smith,” and another tipster stated emphatically that “(the) guy on video was definitely Joe Smith.” A third tipster, a woman, said she was “100 percent sure (the) suspect is Joe Smith.”

It later came to light that the callers included Smith’s former business partner, a former employer and a housemate.

Arrest and probation violation

Police visited Smith’s former home and spoke with his estranged wife, Luz Castrillon. She directed detectives to the place where he was staying. Police found drug paraphernalia there and arrested Smith as a probation violator.

Smith did not have much to say after the arrest.

Security camera details

When Evanoff and police cued the device to the video snip, they saw Carlie’s abduction. On the tape, the abductor wore a mechanic’s uniform with a name tag. He had heavily tattooed arms and appeared to be about 5-foot-8 with a sturdy build and dark hair.

Arrest

Joseph Smith was arrested after police found drug paraphernalia at the location directed by Luz Castrillon. The arrest occurred as a probation violator.

Trial

Conviction

In the fall of 2005, Smith was tried for murder, kidnapping and sexual battery. The verdict was never seriously in doubt, and the case relied on the car wash surveillance videotape, evidence related to the borrowed car used in the abduction, and testimony about a jailhouse confession by Smith’s brother John.

After two weeks of testimony, the jury of eight women and four men convicted Smith of murder, kidnapping and sexual battery.

Penalty phase and jury recommendation

During the penalty phase, the jury heard evidence on whether Smith should live or die. Assistant state attorneys Craig Schaeffer and Debra Johnes Riva presented aggravating factors in favor of execution.

In the penalty phase, the judge considered whether to follow a jury recommendation. The jury recommended execution 10-to-2.

Smith’s court-appointed public defenders tried to portray him as sympathetic. Attorney Carolyn DaSilva said: “Joe is a man with many good qualities,” and also said: “but he was unable to control his drug addiction.”

Attorney Adam Tebrugge said: “The defendant repeatedly sought help for his problems, but was either denied help or received ineffective assistance for his problems.”

Statements and testimony in court

Smith’s paternal grandmother, Andrea Brucia, submitted a written statement that was read aloud:

“Carlie’s future and life have been stolen from her and from her family,” Andrea Brucia said. “We will never know her as a teenager. Our family is forever broken. Our nightmares about what you've done to her — our hearts will never heal.”

Carlie’s mother, Susan Schorpen, said:

“I can no longer watch her grow,” said the girl's mother, Susan Schorpen. “I can only imagine her in a wedding gown walking down the aisle.”

During the penalty phase, jurors wept along with Schorpen. Dr. Vega estimated that Smith choked Carlie for several minutes to kill her and that this gave Smith time for “a substantial level of reflection” during the murder.

Smith’s allocution

Judge Andrew Owens gave Smith a chance to stand before him and make his case for life. Smith said:

“I do not ask for mercy for myself,” said Smith, weeping. “The only thing I can see to give me a life sentence is for my family. I do not want to see them hurt any further.”

Smith also said he was trying to kill himself on Super Bowl Sunday after a lifetime of drug addiction and stated:

“I just wanted to die that day,” he said.

Sentencing

Circuit Judge Andrew Owens sentenced Smith on March 13, 2006, by lethal injection. The judge had previously said:

“The scales of life and death tip unquestionably toward death,” said Circuit Judge Andrew Owens.

Before announcing the death punishment, Owens said Smith faced life in prison without the possibility of parole for assault and kidnapping of his victim. Owens agreed with the jury’s earlier 10-to-2 recommendation that Smith be executed.

The judge said:

“Carlie endured unspeakable trauma, which began at the time of her kidnapping,” the judge said before announcing the sentence. “The image of the defendant taking her arm and leading her away no doubt will forever be etched in our minds.”

Owens also said:

During the sexual and physical abuse Carlie was subjected to, the judge said, “at 11 years of age, there is no doubt she was aware of her dire predicament and that she had little or no hope of survival.”

Owens added:

“Her death was conscious less and pitiless ... calculated and premeditated.”

When Owens condemned Smith to death on March 16, 2006, the judge said:

“Her death was conscienceless and pitiless and undoubtedly unnecessarily torturous,” Owens said. “The scales of life and death tilt unequivocally on the side of death.”

Smith showed no emotion as Owens read the sentences.

Appeals

Smith had 30 days to appeal the sentence and punishment meted out by the court.

Outcome

Smith’s death sentence by lethal injection remained the legal outcome at the time of the case reporting. He was described as biding his time at Union Correctional Institution in Raiford, Fla.

Aftermath

Carlie Brucia was found four days after her disappearance on the grounds of a church in Sarasota.

Carlie’s stepfather Steven Kansler buried his face in his hands as Owens read details of the crimes before sentencing.

Carlie’s mother Susan Schorpen was not in the courtroom for sentencing because she was in a Florida jail on drug and prostitution charges. She had said that the pain of losing her daughter led her to take drugs to numb the pain and commit herself three times.

During a family meeting in jail on February 5, 2004, Smith confessed. After repeated denials, Smith confessed and said:

“I really f——— up,” Joe Smith whispered.

Smith explained he took large amounts of heroin and cocaine in an attempt to kill himself on the day he abducted Brucia in 2004. Smith said he did not remember much of what happened and asked the judge to spare him for the sake of his family.

In describing what he did, Smith admitted he had “rough sex” with the child and said he might have killed her. He said he could direct his mother and brother to the body concealed at a spot not far from the site of the abduction, and he warned them not to go to the authorities, hoping he could use the location as a bargaining chip.

John Smith and Patricia Davis searched the church property described as Central Church of Christ at 6221 Proctor Road, using “Station C” to mean the location of Carlie’s body.

At 9 p.m. on February 5, 2004, during the second search, Smith guided the group by phone from his jail cell. He said he remembered placing the body between two trees. The body was found near midnight beyond a chain-link fence.

After Smith was sentenced, Luz Castrillon won a divorce decree five months later that barred Smith from having any contact with his daughters. She sold their house and dropped out of sight.

The coverage also reported later events involving Susan Schorpen, including her arrest for prostitution in St. Petersburg, Florida, and subsequent prostitution-related arrest in Manatee County, including a crack pipe found in her bra and a 90-day sentence for that conviction. It reported that Schorpen’s life continued after Carlie’s murder, including that her son Leif was taken from her by the state after a determination of unfitness, Steven Kansler’s domestic violence arrest after a fight with Schorpen, her mother Eileen Schorpen evicting her from the McIntosh Road home, and that Schorpen died of cancer.

The case also included discussion of Amber Alert policy changes by Sheriff Charlie Wells and described a zero-tolerance policy toward probation violators in Florida, which was said to swell county jail populations.

Other details

People connected to the events

• Carlie Brucia’s parents were Susan Schorpen and Joe Brucia.
• Carlie also lived with her stepfather Steven Kansler and her half-brother Leif.
• Connie Arnold was the location where Carlie spent the sleepover prior to walking home.
• Mike Evanoff owned the firm contacted for the security camera footage.
• Jeff and Naomi Pincus provided information about the borrowed Buick station wagon.
• Joseph Smith’s estranged wife was Luz Castrillon.
• Sarasota Detective Toby Davis and FBI agents David Street and Leo Martinez participated in the second search.
• Judge Andrew Owens was the circuit judge who imposed the death sentence.
• Assistant state attorneys were Craig Schaeffer and Debra Johnes Riva.
• Dr. Russell Vega was the medical examiner.
• Defense attorneys included Carolyn DaSilva and Adam Tebrugge.

Counts of victims and key facts

• One victim, Carlie Brucia, was described.
• Smith was described as one of 374 men on Death Row in Florida at the time of the reporting.

Clothing, descriptions and possessions tied to the abduction

• The abductor wore a mechanic’s uniform complete with a name tag and had heavily tattooed arms.
• Smith was described as having gained weight since arrest and had a prison weight reported as 219 pounds, more than 40 pounds heavier than at the time of arrest.
• Smith was described as biding his time at Union Correctional Institution in Raiford, Florida.