FORT WORTH, TX – A local man was handed down a life sentence on Monday following his conviction for the fatal shooting of his girlfriend, who happened to be pregnant with twin boys, in 2020.
Maurice Kelso Smith, aged 32, was apprehended on June 29, 2020, in connection with an armed robbery case, around the same time he had allegedly gunned down his girlfriend, Darionne Burley.
Witnesses last spotted Smith and Burley together, exiting a Waffle House in Fort Worth on the day of the incident. Subsequently, Smith reportedly shot Burley in the back of the head, as per court documents. The records further note that Smith fled to Mansfield afterward.
d and commandeered a woman’s car at gunpoint, leaving his vehicle at the crime scene. Police responding to the robbery made a gruesome discovery in his abandoned car, where they found Burley’s body.
Officers traced Smith back to his residence, where he was discovered with evidence implicating him in the murder, including blood-spattered clothing and the alleged murder weapon. Further investigations revealed that Smith had obtained the firearm illegally the day before the murder.
Additionally, testimonies heard during the court proceedings indicated Smith had physically assaulted Burley in June, while heavily under the influence of drugs.
Following the pronouncement of the sentence, members of Burley’s family read statements detailing the emotional trauma inflicted upon them and imagining the life Burley could have lived were she still alive.
The verdict meant Smith would be serving a life sentence without an option for parole.