Pamela Ann Smart (née Wojas; born August 16, 1967) is an American woman who was convicted of being an
accomplice
Under the English common law, an accomplice is a person who actively participates in the commission of a crime, even if they take no part in the actual criminal offense. For example, in a bank robbery, the person who points the gun at the teller ...
to
first-degree murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the c ...
,
conspiracy to commit murder
Conspiracy to murder is a statutory offence defined by the intent to commit murder.
England and Wales
The offence of conspiracy to murder was created in statutory law by section 4 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and retained as ...
, and
witness tampering
Witness tampering is the act of attempting to improperly influence, alter or prevent the testimony of witnesses within criminal or civil proceedings.
Witness tampering and reprisals against witnesses in organized crime cases have been a difficul ...
. In 1990, at age 22, Smart conspired with her underaged sex partner, then 15-year-old William "Billy" Flynn, and three of his friends to have her 24-year-old husband Greggory Smart murdered in
Derry
Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...
,
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
. She is currently serving a
life sentence
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
at
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women a women's prison in the town of Bedford, New York, is the largest women's prison in New York state. The prison previously opened under the name Westfield State Farm in 1901. It lies just outside ...
, a
maximum security prison in
Westchester County
Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
.
Early life
Pamela Smart was born Pamela Wojas in
Windham,
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
, on August 16, 1967, the daughter of John and Linda Wojas. She grew up in
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
,
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, before her family moved to Derry, New Hampshire, when she was in the eighth grade. Pamela attended secondary school at
Pinkerton Academy
Pinkerton Academy is a secondary school in Derry, New Hampshire, United States. It serves roughly 3,269 students, making it by far the largest high school in New Hampshire, more than 1,300 students greater than the next largest high school. Pi ...
in
Derry
Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...
, where she was a cheerleader, and graduated from
Florida State University
Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...
(FSU) with a degree in communications. At FSU, she had been the host of a college radio program.
Pamela met Greggory Smart while she visited New Hampshire over Christmas break in 1986. They formed a serious relationship in February 1987 and married two years later, with Greggory moving to Florida to live with Pamela during her senior year at FSU. The couple shared a passion for
heavy metal music
Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock and acid rock, heavy metal bands developed a ...
. However, seven months into their marriage, they began having difficulties in their relationship. Pamela took a job as a media coordinator at
Winnacunnet High School
Winnacunnet High School is an American public high school in Hampton, New Hampshire. It serves students in grades 9 through 12 who live in Hampton, Seabrook, North Hampton, South Hampton, and Hampton Falls. Students from South Hampton attend ei ...
in
Hampton, New Hampshire
Hampton is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 16,214 at the 2020 census. On the Atlantic Ocean coast, Hampton is home to Hampton Beach, a summer tourist destination.
The densely populated central part ...
,
where she met high school sophomore William "Billy" Flynn at Project Self-Esteem, a local drug awareness program at Winnacunnet High where both were volunteers. They bonded over their mutual interest in heavy metal. Pamela also met another intern named Cecelia Pierce, who was friends with Flynn.
Murder of Gregg Smart
On May 1, 1990, Pamela Smart came home from a meeting at work to find her
condominium
A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...
ransacked and her husband Greggory murdered. Police officials said the crime scene looked like a disrupted
burglary
Burglary, also called breaking and entering and sometimes housebreaking, is the act of entering a building or other areas without permission, with the intention of committing a criminal offence. Usually that offence is theft, robbery or murder ...
. Smart was later accused of seducing 15-year-old Flynn and threatening to stop having sex with him unless he killed her husband. Flynn did so with the help of friends Patrick "Pete" Randall, Vance "J.R." Lattime, Jr., and Raymond Fowler.
During the investigation, Lattime's father brought a
.38 caliber
.38 caliber is a frequently used name for the caliber of firearms and firearm cartridges.
The .38 is considered a large firearm cartridge; anything larger than .32 is considered a large caliber.Wright, James D.; Rossi, Peter H.; Daly, Kathleen ...
pistol
A pistol is a handgun, more specifically one with the chamber integral to its gun barrel, though in common usage the two terms are often used interchangeably. The English word was introduced in , when early handguns were produced in Europe, an ...
he had found in his house to the police, believing it might have been the murder weapon. On May 14, an anonymous tip also indicated that Smart's friend Cecelia Pierce was aware of the plan. Police talked to Pierce, who agreed to wear a
wire
Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm
A wire is a flexible strand of metal.
Wire is c ...
and record conversations with Smart in hopes that she would say something incriminating, which she did.
On August 1, 1990, Detective Daniel Pelletier approached Smart in her school's parking lot. Smart recognized him, having spoken to him on at least six other occasions. Taken by surprise, she asked, "What's up?" "Well, Pam," Pelletier said in the recording, "I have some good news and I have some bad news. The good news is that we've solved the murder of your husband. The bad news is you're under arrest." "What for?" Smart asked. "First-degree murder." Smart was then handcuffed and arraigned at the Derry District Court and jailed at the
New Hampshire State Prison for Women
New Hampshire State Prison for Women is the only women's prison in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The New Hampshire Department of Corrections facility is located in Concord.
The new prison opened in 2018 after decades of legal battles conce ...
, which was in
Goffstown at the time.
Trial
Smart's trial was widely watched and garnered considerable media attention, partly because it was one of the first in the U.S. to allow TV cameras in the courtroom. She faced life in prison if convicted. The prosecution's case relied heavily on testimony from Smart's teenaged co-conspirators, who had secured their own
plea bargains
A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defend ...
before her trial began.
When oral arguments began March 4, 1991, Assistant Attorney General Diane Nicolosi portrayed the teenagers as naïve victims of an "evil woman bent on murder." The prosecution portrayed Pamela Smart as the cold-blooded mastermind who controlled her underaged sex partner. Nicolosi claimed that Smart seduced Flynn to get him to murder her husband, so that she could avoid an expensive divorce and benefit from a $140,000 life insurance policy. In her testimony, Smart acknowledged that she had what she termed an "affair" with the underaged boy, but claimed that the murder of her husband was solely the doing of Flynn and his friends as a reaction to her telling Flynn that she wished to end their "relationship" and repair her marriage. She insisted that she neither participated in the murder plot nor had any foreknowledge of it. Though Flynn claimed he had fallen in love with Smart when he first met her,
Cecelia Pierce testified at trial that Smart and Flynn were originally just friends. Pierce first noticed a change about February, when Smart confessed to her that she "loved Bill." Flynn testified at trial that he was a virgin before he had sex with Pamela Smart.
After a 14-day trial that culminated on March 22, 1991, in the Rockingham County Superior Court, Smart was found
guilty
Guilty or The Guilty may refer to:
* Guilt (emotion), an experience that occurs when a person believes they have violated a moral standard
Law
*Culpability, the degree to which an agent can be held responsible for action or inaction
*Guilt (law) ...
of being an accomplice to first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and witness tampering. The tampering stemmed from Pamela's coercing Cecelia not to say anything to authorities or to lie.
The conviction was largely the result of the testimony of her co-conspirators and secretly taped conversations in which Smart appeared to contradict her claims of having wanted to reconcile with her husband and of having no knowledge of the boys' plot.
She could have been charged with
capital murder
Capital murder was a statutory offence of aggravated murder in Great Britain, and Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, which was later adopted as a legal provision to define certain forms of aggravated murder in the United States. In som ...
, but the prosecution decided against it. Later that day, she was given a mandatory sentence of
life in prison
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
without the possibility for
parole
Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...
.
Smart argued that the media had influenced her trial and conviction, as she explained in the 2014
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
documentary ''
Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart''.
Imprisonment
Smart is serving her life sentence at the maximum-security
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women a women's prison in the town of Bedford, New York, is the largest women's prison in New York state. The prison previously opened under the name Westfield State Farm in 1901. It lies just outside ...
in
Westchester County, New York
Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...
, where she was transferred in 1993 from the
New Hampshire State Prison for Women
New Hampshire State Prison for Women is the only women's prison in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The New Hampshire Department of Corrections facility is located in Concord.
The new prison opened in 2018 after decades of legal battles conce ...
in
Goffstown. At the time, New Hampshire officials said the transfer was for unspecified "security reasons." Co-defendants William Flynn and Patrick Randall were also transferred out-of-state, in both cases to the
Maine State Prison
The Maine State Prison was erected in Thomaston, Maine in 1824 and relocated to Warren in 2002. This maximum-security prison has a capacity of 916 adult male inmates with an average daily population of 900.
History
The state legislature establis ...
in
Warren, Maine
Warren is a town in Knox County, Maine, United States. The population was 4,865 at the 2020 census. It includes the villages of East Warren, Warren and South Warren, the latter home to the Maine State Prison and minimum security Bolduc Correcti ...
.
The specific reasons for Smart's transfer are unclear. In 2007, a senior assistant in the state attorney general's office told the ''Keene State Equinox'' that Smart was transferred due to discipline problems. While she had accrued 22 disciplinary reports, all but two of them were for minor offenses. Deputy Compact Administrator Denise Heath claimed that at the time, there were fears that the State Prison for Women was not suitable for a high-profile inmate like Smart, and that it would be too easy for someone to break her out. However, New Hampshire has never had a formal transfer agreement with New York; Heath believed the transfer was a "commissioner to commissioner" arrangement. Smart's family maintains they were never informed of the transfer.
Although she maintains her innocence, Smart has conceded that her husband would still be alive if she had not had what she continues to describe as an "affair" with Flynn, a minor. While in prison, Smart has tutored other inmates and has completed two
master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. s with concentrations in literature and legal studies from Mercy College, which were paid for with private funds from
Mercy College. Smart became a member of the
National Organization for Women
The National Organization for Women (NOW) is an American feminist organization. Founded in 1966, it is legally a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in Washington, D.C. It ...
, campaigning for rights for women in prison.
In October 1996, Smart was severely beaten by fellow inmates Mona Graves and Ghania Miller. This resulted in the insertion of a plastic plate in the left side of her face. The two inmates beat Smart after they accused her of snitching on them about their prison relationship. Graves and Miller were convicted of second-degree assault in the attack on Smart at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility and were subsequently transferred to separate prisons. As a result of the beating, Smart takes medication for chronic pain and sometimes thinks of
suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
. Her counselor, Dr. Eleanor Pam, says that "she has many, many, many dark days."
Smart says she still keeps track of Flynn because she regards him as being the key to her freedom. "He is one of the few people that could actually get me out of here, by coming forward and telling the truth, but he's never gonna do that," said Smart.
In 2003, photos of a scantily clad Smart were published in the ''
National Enquirer
The ''National Enquirer'' is an American tabloid newspaper. Founded in 1926, the newspaper has undergone a number of changes over the years.
The ''National Enquirer'' openly acknowledges that it pays sources for tips, a common practice in tabl ...
''. She filed a complaint against the prison and was placed in solitary confinement for two months. Smart sued, claiming that the photos were taken by a prison guard who had
rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...
d her, but the lawsuit was dismissed. In 2004, Smart and fellow inmate
Carolyn Warmus
Carolyn Warmus (born January 8, 1964) is an American former elementary schoolteacher who was convicted at age 28 of the 1989 murder of her lover's wife, 40-year-old Betty Jeanne Solomon. After a hung jury at her first trial in 1991, Warmus was co ...
sued officials of Bedford Hills, claiming
sexual harassment
Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...
, and
sexual assault
Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...
by a corrections officer, who they said coerced them into posing for the suggestive pictures published in 2003. On November 5, 2009, a U.S. District Court Judge approved a $23,875 judgment to Smart from the State of New York. Smart received $8,750, while her attorney received the remaining balance for attorney fees.
While serving her sentence, Smart took part in a writer's workshop, which was facilitated by playwright
Eve Ensler
V, formerly Eve Ensler (; born May 25, 1953), is an American playwright, performer, feminist, and activist. V is best known for her play ''The Vagina Monologues''. . The workshop and Smart's writing were exhibited in the 2003
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
documentary ''What I Want My Words to Do to You''.
In April 2004, the
First U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a 2002 ruling by a federal judge who rejected her federal
habeas petition. Prior to her federal
appeal
In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...
, Smart had exhausted all judicial appeals at the state level. In July 2005, the New Hampshire
Executive Council unanimously denied a
pardon
A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...
request for "any conditions the governor may seek to impose." In an interview with
ABC News
ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
, Smart indicated she is afraid of growing old and dying in prison and would rather have been given the
death penalty
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
.
Co-conspirators
In 1992, Bill Flynn was sentenced to life in prison for
second degree murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...
; not eligible for parole for 40 years with 12 years of the minimum sentence deferred if he maintains good behavior. Flynn was incarcerated at the
Maine State Prison
The Maine State Prison was erected in Thomaston, Maine in 1824 and relocated to Warren in 2002. This maximum-security prison has a capacity of 916 adult male inmates with an average daily population of 900.
History
The state legislature establis ...
in
Warren
A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval A ...
, where he earned his
GED
The General Educational Development (GED) tests are a group of four subject tests which, when passed, provide certification that the test taker has United States or Canadian high school-level academic skills. It is an alternative to the US high ...
, has been active in charity work and worked as an electrician at the prison. In 2007, Flynn sought a sentence reduction after serving 16 years, stating that he had vowed not to do so until he had spent as many years behind bars as he had spent free.
He also apologized to Gregg Smart's family for murdering him. The Smart family opposed the request.
[ On February 12, 2008, the request was denied, although Flynn's earliest parole eligibility date was reduced by three years to 25 years, making him eligible for parole in 2015. In July 2014, Flynn was moved to a minimum security facility in Warren, Maine; the transfer allowed him to participate in a work release program.
Flynn was granted parole by the state parole board on March 12, 2015, and was released from prison with lifetime parole on June 4, 2015, a few days past the 25th anniversary of Gregg Smart's death.
Like Flynn, Patrick Randall was also sentenced to life in prison for second degree murder, eligible for parole after 40 years with 12 years deferred, making him eligible as early as 2018.] He too served his sentence at the Maine State Prison in Warren, Maine. In March 2009, a judge reduced Randall's minimum sentence by three years to 25 years, making him eligible for release as early as June 2015.[ Randall was granted parole by the New Hampshire Parole Board after a hearing on April 9, 2015. He was released on June 4, 2015, on lifetime parole, the same day as co-conspirator Flynn's release and a few days past the 25th anniversary of Gregg Smart's death.]
Co-conspirator and driver Vance Lattime was sentenced to life in prison as an accomplice to second-degree murder, eligible for parole after 30 years with 12 years suspended. In 2005, his minimum sentence was reduced by three years, and he was paroled that same year, 15 years after Gregg Smart's death.[
Co-conspirator Raymond Fowler (who waited in the car during the killing) was sentenced to 30 years for conspiracy to murder and attempted burglary, and parole eligibility after 15 years. Fowler was paroled in 2003, 13 years after Gregg Smart's death, but was sent back to prison in 2004 for violating his parole terms. He was paroled again in June 2005.
]
Popular culture
Books
*The case was the subject of several true crime
True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events.
The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...
books, including ''Teach Me To Kill'' () and ''Deadly Lessons'' ().
*The case was featured in the books ''Till Death Do Us Part'' (), about murderous spouses, ''Evil Women'' (), about women who commit murder, and ''American Murder'' (), which compares media portrayals of famous crimes with the facts.
*Dean J. Smart, brother of murder victim Gregg Smart, released ''Skylights and Screendoors'' (), his memoir, on April 7, 2011.
*Joyce Maynard
Daphne Joyce Maynard (born November 5, 1953) is an American novelist and journalist. She began her career in journalism in the 1970s, writing for several publications, most notably '' Seventeen'' magazine and ''The New York Times''. Maynard contr ...
drew several elements from the case for her 1992 novel ''To Die For'' ().
*The character of Becky Burgess in feminist writer Marge Piercy
Marge Piercy (born March 31, 1936) is an American progressive activist and writer. Her work includes ''Woman on the Edge of Time''; ''He, She and It'', which won the 1993 Arthur C. Clarke Award; and ''Gone to Soldiers'', a New York Times Best ...
's novel ''The Longings of Women'' () was inspired by Pamela Smart and the conspiracy to kill Greggory Smart.
Television and movies
*The case was the basis for the NBC Television
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
crime and drama series ''Law & Order
''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise.
''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...
'' Season 2, Episode 9 "Renunciation", originally aired November 19, 1991.
*The trial was the basis of the television movie
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
'' Murder in New Hampshire: The Pamela Wojas Smart Story'', starring Helen Hunt
Helen Elizabeth Hunt (born June 15, 1963) is an American actress and director. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards.
Hunt rose to fame portraying Jam ...
and Chad Allen, released 1991.
*Joyce Maynard's novel was adapted by Buck Henry
Buck Henry (born Henry Zuckerman; December 9, 1930 – January 8, 2020) was an American actor, screenwriter, and director. Henry's contributions to film included his work as a co-writer for Mike Nichols's ''The Graduate'' (1967) for which he re ...
for Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American film director, producer, photographer, and musician. He has earned acclaim as both an independent and mainstream filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultur ...
's 1995 movie ''To Die For
''To Die For'' is a 1995 satirical black comedy film directed by Gus Van Sant, and written by Buck Henry based on the novel of the same name by Joyce Maynard, which in turn was inspired by the story of Pamela Smart. It stars Nicole Kidman, Joa ...
'', starring Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...
and Matt Dillon
Matthew Raymond Dillon (born February 18, 1964) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Oscar and Grammy nomination.
Dillon made his feature film debut in '' Over the Edge'' (1979) and established himself as a te ...
as the fictional wife and husband, and Joaquin Phoenix
Joaquin Rafael Phoenix (; né Bottom; born October 28, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for playing dark and unconventional characters in independent films. He has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academ ...
as the wife's underaged sex partner.
*''Reel Crime/Real Story'' a short lived crime documentary series from the Investigation Discovery
Investigation Discovery (stylized and branded on-air as ID since 2008) is an American multinational pay television network dedicated to true crime documentaries owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. As of February 2015, approximately 86 million Ameri ...
channel, detailed crimes that became the basis for movies. Smart's crimes are detailed in the episode titled "To Die For" Season 1, Episode 3, originally aired: June 12, 2012.
*The crime series ''American Justice
''American Justice'' is an American criminal justice television program airing on the A&E Network. From 1992–2005, the show was hosted by television reporter Bill Kurtis. The show features interesting or notable cases, such as the murder ...
'' played an episode on the case: "Crime of Passion: The Pamela Smart Story", aired May 25, 1996.
*The murder was parodied in an episode of the animated sitcom ''Family Guy
''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffin family, Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter Griff ...
'', "Fast Times at Buddy Cianci Jr. High
The fourth season of ''Family Guy'' aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox from May 1, 2005, to May 21, 2006, and consisted of thirty episodes, making it the longest season to date. The first half of the season is included within the List of Fami ...
", season 4, episode 2, aired May 8, 2005.
*''Snapped
''Snapped'' is an American true crime television series produced by Jupiter Entertainment. The series depicts high profile or bizarre cases of women accused of murder. Each episode outlines the motivation for murder, whether it be revenge agains ...
'', an American true crime
True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events.
The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
, dedicated its 13th episode in the second season (2005) to the case.
*The case is referenced on ''Psych
''Psych'' is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks for USA Network. The series stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observ ...
'', on the Season 5 episode "Dual Spires
"Dual Spires" is the 12th episode of the fifth season of the American comedy-drama television series ''Psych'', and the 75th episode overall. The episode was directed by Matt Shakman and written by Bill Callahan and series star James Roday Ro ...
", where a character is said to be "pulling a Pamela Smart" after she has allegedly killed a teenage girl while having a sexual relationship with an underage boy, aired December 1, 2010.
*Smart appeared on ''Oprah
Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ...
'' on October 22, 2010. On the show, Smart claimed she was innocent and believes that her sentence for life in prison is too harsh.
*'' Scorned: Love Kills'', a series on the Investigation Discovery
Investigation Discovery (stylized and branded on-air as ID since 2008) is an American multinational pay television network dedicated to true crime documentaries owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. As of February 2015, approximately 86 million Ameri ...
channel, dedicated the Season 1, Episode 4 titled "Hot For Teacher" to the story on February 11, 2012.
*The HBO documentary '' Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart'' was directed by Jeremiah Zagar, aired August 14, 2014.
*The USA Network series ''Corrupt Crimes
Bellum Entertainment Group (formerly ''LongNeedle Entertainment'') was a Burbank, California, Burbank, California-based television production and distribution company.
Bellum developed, produced, and distributed TV projects for broadcast, cable, ...
'', which investigates crime stories and interviews experts to analyze a wide variety of cases, dedicated an entire episode to Pamela Smart's upbringing, career and murder trial in Season 1, Episode 62, entitled "From Student Seduction to Murder", which aired on February 19, 2016.
*The Reelz
Reelz (formerly known as Reelz Channel) is an American digital cable and satellite television network owned by Hubbard Broadcasting. The network's programming was formerly devoted to entertainment-oriented programming focusing on the Hollywood ...
Network series
Murder Made Me Famous
', a fact-based crime documentary series, aired the Season 2, Episode 1 titled "Pamela Smart" on March 19, 2016.
*The Oxygen Network
Oxygen (branded on air as Oxygen True Crime) is an American television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming unit of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast, through its Cable Entertainment Group subsidiary. The channel primar ...
series '' Snapped: Killer Couples'', reveals couples whose attractions lead them to carry out crimes, released an episode of Smart and Flynn's case on Season 6
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...
, Episode 10, entitled "Pamela Smart & William Flynn", which aired on December 13, 2016.
*In August 2018, the Investigation Discovery
Investigation Discovery (stylized and branded on-air as ID since 2008) is an American multinational pay television network dedicated to true crime documentaries owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. As of February 2015, approximately 86 million Ameri ...
channel released a three-part program titled ''Pamela Smart: An American Murder Mystery'', with a total run-time of 127 minutes:
* In 2019, on French Chérie 25
Chérie 25 () is a French TV channel, controlled by the NRJ Group. Chérie 25 is launched on TNT, satellite, and xDSL on 12 December 2012. The channel is named after the radio station Chérie FM, owned by the same group.
History
In 2011, Jean ...
channel : Snapped : les couples tueurs Episode 20 "Smart & Flynn"
* In 2021, the case was featured on Investigation Discovery
Investigation Discovery (stylized and branded on-air as ID since 2008) is an American multinational pay television network dedicated to true crime documentaries owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. As of February 2015, approximately 86 million Ameri ...
's ''Deadly Women
''Deadly Women'' is an American true crime documentary television series produced by Beyond International Group and airing on the Investigation Discovery (ID) network.
The series focuses on murders committed by women. It is hosted by former ...
'' in the episode "Killer Intellect."
Notes
External links
*
Pam Smart links
from the website of the Lane Memorial Library
Trial Transcripts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smart, Pamela Ann
1967 births
20th-century criminals
American female murderers
American murderers
American female criminals
American people convicted of child sexual abuse
American people convicted of murder
American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment
American rapists
Criminals from New Hampshire
Living people
People convicted of murder by New Hampshire
People convicted of statutory rape offenses
People from Coral Gables, Florida
People from Goffstown, New Hampshire
Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by New Hampshire
School sexual abuse scandals
Mariticides
Mercy College (New York) alumni
Murder-for-hire cases