D.O.B: September 26, 1971
Place of Birth: Union, South Carolina
Parents: Linda & Harry Vaughan
Conviction Date: July 22, 1995
Sentence: LIFE
Prison: Leath Correctional Insitution , Greenwood, South Carolina
Susan Vaughan Smith was born September 26, 1971, in Union, South Carolina to parents Linda and Harry Vaughan. She was the only daughter out of three children. Susan's parents divorced when she was seven years old and five weeks later Harry, at the age of 37, committed suicide.
Within weeks of her parents divorce, her mother Linda re-married to a successful local businessman, Beverly (Bev) Russell.
Throughout Susan's teen years she was harboring a family secret. At the age of sixteen her step-father (Bev) had not only been her step-father but also her molester. Susan reported the inappropriate behavior to her mother (Linda) and the Department of Social Services, and Bev moved out from the home temporarily, after a few family counselling sessions Bev returned home.
Her mother was more embarrassed that Susan made this a public affair than protecting her daughter. When Bev moved back to the house the sexual molestation continued.
In 1988, Susan got a job at the local Winn-Dixie grocery store, during that time she was sexually active with three men, a married older man who worked at the store, a younger co-worker and her step-father Bev. Susan became pregnant and had a abortion, the married man ended the relationship, her reaction to the breakup was to attempt suicide by taking aspirin and Tylenol.
At work, another relationship was beginning to form with co-worker and highschool friend David Smith, after a little dating Susan discovered she was pregnant, the parents-to-be were married March 15, 1991.
October 10, 1991 their first son was born, Michael Daniel Smith. David and Susan were so happy and showered the new bundle of joy with love and attention. David started to realize the strain on the marriage because the newly weds differences, Susan was more materialistic than David and often turned to her mother for financial help. David found Linda to be intrusive and controlling and resented Susan always doing what Linda wanted her to do, especially when it came to raising Michael.
March 1992, David and Susan were separated. Over the next seven months the separated couple tried on and off to fix the marriage. During the separation Susan was dating a former boyfriend from work, we all know that won't help a marriage!!!!!!!!!
In November 1992, Susan announced she was pregnant again. The couple borrowed some money from Susan's mother Linda for a down payment on a house, believing that having a place to call home would solve all their problems. But over the next nine months Susan became miserable, distant and complained about being pregnant.
June 1993, David felt isolated in his marriage and began a relationship with a co-worker. August 5, 1993 Alexander Tyler Smith was born. After about three weeks David moved out and the two decided the marriage was over.
Regardless on how things ended with the two, both David and Susan were good,attentive and caring parents who seemed to enjoy the children.
In January 1994, Susan started dating a co-worker from her job at Conso Products Tom Findlay. She then became a little to obsessed when Tom Findlay sent her a Dear John letter explaining that this relationship cannot go any further then just friendship, she wanted more children and Tom did not want children, nor did he want to raise anyone's children.
At around 8p.m. on October 25, 1994 Susan put her barefooted sons in the car, strapped them in their car seats and began driving around. In her confession she stated that she wanted to die and was headed to her mother's house, but decided against it. Instead she drove to John D. Long Lake and drove onto a ramp, got out of the car, put the car in drive, released the brake and watched as her car, with her children sleeping in the back seat, plunged into the lake. The car drifted out a ways then slowly sank.
Susan lied for 9 days and made up some pathedic story about a black man jacked her car with her children in it, but authorities finally caught up to her. When Susan finally confessed authorities wanted to find the bodies of Michael and younger brother Alex right away. Susan explained to authorities where exactly the vehicle had started to sink. Divers found the vehicle upside down and what crushed alot of hearts was the two little children were holding hands, also with one of the small child's hand pressed against the window, along with the Dear John letter from Tom findlay in the front seat.
It took the jury two-and-a-half hours to return with a verdict of guilty of two counts of urder. Susan Smith was spared the death sentence and received 30 years to life in prison. She will be eligible for parole in 2025, when she is 53 years old. The father of the boys David Smith has swornto attend every parole hearing to try and keep Susan Smith in jail for life.
Since her incarceration at South Carolina's Leath Correctional Institution, two guards have been punished for having sex with Susan Smith.
