Saginaw, MI: Saginaw County prosecutor won't charge girlfriend for strangling James Township man

Published: Thursday, June 17, 2010, 1:50 PM

Police say Michael A. Smith, 41, broke into the bathroom of his home at 5120 Stroebel in James Township, where his girlfriend, Misty Harris, 34, was hiding during an altercation Sept. 1, 2009. Once inside a struggle ensued and Harris strangled Smith with the cord of a hairdryer.
JAMES TWP. — Misty A. Harris, 34, spent several days in jail after she strangled her boyfriend, Michael A. Smith, with a hairdryer cord last September, but she won’t be charged with any crimes, Saginaw County Prosecutor Michael D. Thomas says.
Thomas declared Smith’s death a justified homicide, saying Harris was threatened and frightened for her life.
“There was a kicked-out and broken-down door, she had bruises and cuts on her body, and she was naked,” Thomas said. “All I can tell you is what her explanation was as to why she strangled him and where it happened, and that’s exactly what the evidence supports.
“We found nothing in the investigation that led us to conclude that the original victim, the woman who defended herself and strangled the decedent ... should be charged with any type of criminal homicide.”
Thomas said Harris was staying with Smith, 41, of James Township, who according to state police toxicology reports had amphetamines and Lorazepam, an anxiety medication, in his system at the time of his death. Harris attempted to leave the home after Smith assaulted her, investigators said.
“She ran out of the house,” Thomas said. “He ran after her. He physically ripped all of her clothes off of her outside and dragged her by her hair back into the house and continued to assault her.”
Back inside Smith’s rental home at 5120 Stroebel in James Township, Harris took refuge in the bathroom.
“He broke a hole through the door and was able to get into the bathroom to continue the assault,” Thomas said. “And she grabbed a hairdryer cord ... put it around his neck and strangled him until he quit fighting, and that’s where he died.”
Harris ran, bloodied and naked, into the street, where two passersby stopped to help.
The Saginaw News couldn’t reach Harris or family members of Smith for comment.
Since this article was published, Hannah Smith, 15, of Saginaw Township, Michael Smith's daughter, said "it doesn't add up" and she disputes the prosecutor's decision.
She said she is meeting with investigators to review the case file and evidence next week.
Thomas said Smith has a documented history of violence, and on the day Harris killed him, he was facing a third-offense domestic violence charge stemming from an alleged assault against Harris in April 2009.
The state offender website, which tracks felons up to three years after their release or completion of parole, lists Smith as a habitual felon. His record indicates he was sentenced for two breaking and entering charges in 1991, first-degree retail fraud in 2000 and two instances of check fraud in 2003.
Harris’ ex-husband, Michael J. Kowalski II, sought and received a one-year personal protection order against Harris on Oct. 27, 2008 through the Saginaw County Probate Court. Saginaw County courthouse officials said they could find no criminal records for Harris.
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