A woman who lied to a federal grand jury about her cousin’s role in a murder was sentenced to 48 months in prison on October 16, 2020.
Shanna Smith, 26, of Buffalo, NY, had previously pled guilty to making false declarations before a grand jury and obstruction of justice. U.S. District Judge Lawrence Vilardo also sentenced Smith to 3 years of supervised release.
Operation Hashtag
In May 2017, federal prosecutors convened a grand jury to assist with a joint Buffalo Police Department/FBI investigation of the CBL/BFL gang. The gang operated out of the Towne Gardens Apartments on the east side of Buffalo.
Smith’s cousin Dalvon Curry was a founding member of the BFL gang and was active on social media. Curry was also an aspiring rapper who produced and performed in several music videos that were shot in and around Towne Gardens and featured members and associates of CBL/BFL. He was convicted of two murders in aid of racketeering and multiple other charges in February 2020.
The murder of Jaquan Sullivan
On December 5, 2015, Curry killed rival gang member Jaquan Sullivan. Sullivan’s gang was called “The Guys”.
According to prosecutors, there was a shoot-on-sight rivalry between the two gangs that had intensified after Sullivan’s cousin Ronnie Scott was killed in 2014.
Curry was standing on the front porch of a friend’s house on the west side when Sullivan appeared behind him and said “you know what time it is”. A shootout ensued and Sullivan was struck twice and died at the hospital. Police found Sullivan’s gun near his body.
Curry and Sullivan had feuded on social media in the weeks leading up to the shooting.
Curry tweeted about the shooting in January 2016: “[B]eef is when we both armed and shoot until someone is dead.”
At Curry’s trial, the government argued that Curry went out hunting for Sullivan, while the defense argued that the shooting was justified as an act of self-defense.
The government claimed that CBL/BFL members thought that Curry was an “internet gangster” until he killed Sullivan.
Curry provides false alibi to investigators
Curry was questioned twice by the police and claimed that he was with Smith at her house at the time of the Sullivan homicide.
Smith confirmed Curry’s alibi to the police on two separate occasions. She later recanted the alibi after a detective showed her surveillance video of Curry in a convenience store near the scene of the shooting, minutes before the shooting.
During the same interview, Smith said that Curry told her he was there with two other people but he didn’t kill Sullivan.
Smith also said that she was at the New Year’s Eve party at Towne Gardens where Xavier Wimes was killed and that Curry had nothing to do with it.
The murder of Xavier Wimes
On January 1, 2017, Curry killed fellow CBL/BFL gang member Xavier Wimes during a New Year’s Eve party at Towne Gardens.
According to prosecutors, Curry and Wimes had argued on Facebook the day before, and Curry had mocked Wimes’ deceased cousin who was a member of a rival gang.
Wimes arrived at the party and hit Curry in the head with a bottle. Several CBL/BFL members attacked Wimes and he locked himself in an apartment. Wimes jumped out of a third floor window to escape, and Curry shot him multiple times in a nearby parking lot.
Curry’s DNA was found on the murder weapon.
Smith’s grand jury testimony
Smith told the CBL/BFL grand jury that she went to the New Year’s Eve party with Curry. She said that Wimes came in the building and hit Curry in the head with a bottle, then around twenty men jumped Wimes. Smith said that Wimes pulled himself upstairs, jumped out of a window and ran, but the men chased him and jumped him again.
She said that she was helping Curry when she heard gunshots. Smith said that Curry picked up a gun from the grass and threw it in the bushes, then they ran to a parking lot and someone drove them to Buffalo General Medical Center.
Several witnesses at Curry’s trial testified that Smith was not present at the party.
A police officer who responded to the scene testified that he caught Curry running through Towne Gardens, and he was bleeding from the left side of his head.
The officer also said that Curry was transported to Erie County Medical Center by ambulance.
Smith’s sentencing submission
Smith’s attorney, Michael Stachowski, noted that his client had accepted responsibility for her actions. Stachowski said that Smith’s desire to help people had clouded her judgement. He called her “a person of simple upbringing” and said that “her kindness enabled others to use her as a pawn”.
Stachowski said that Smith has a long history of alcohol and drug use. He noted that she failed several drug tests while on pre-trial release.
Stachowski said that Smith went to the New Year’s Eve party, got drunk, and learned “the story” from her cousin after the fact. He also said that she was “extremely drunk” and had used marijuana when she testified before the grand jury.
Stachowski urged Judge Vilardo to consider the collateral consequences of her conviction and requested a sentence of probation.