PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – KOIN 6 News talked to the family of Ash Marie Smith who police say was shot in the back of the neck on Portland’s esplanade Sunday night.
Smith’s sisters describe the mother of five as a loyal, honest and energetic person and said she moved to Portland from St. Louis.
Court documents say Wyatt Storm Belcher shot Smith after a drum circle late Sunday night. Police said detectives don’t think Belcher and Smith knew each other.
Smith’s sisters say it’s hard to make sense of her death.
“To hear how it happened is, obviously rough. And it’s a little confusing to me too,” Smith’s sister Helaina Copeland said. “Completely unprovoked, random act of violence. It’s confusing, because people are looking for the why. Some people just said it was for fun.”
Smith’s sisters said she had become homeless in recent years.
“Just because you fall on hard times doesn’t mean you deserve to die. There was no reason for an act. It’s just really hard to understand,” Copeland said.
Smith’s family is raising money for her funeral.
Belcher made his first court appearance earlier in the week, pleading not guilty to second degree murder.
Court documents say witnesses “…realized Smith had been shot when a man who had been standing nearby walked away, but then re-approached with a gun in his right hand.”
The documents go on to say “the man…racked the slide of the firearm, asked if the woman was dead, and asked…if he wanted to be shot, too.”
A witness also “…heard defendant comment “just tidying up,” according to court documents. Court documents say Belcher has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder and Schizoaffective disorder and admitted to taking stimulants.
Editor’s Note: This article previously misstated Smith’s first name as Ashley. It has since been corrected.