SPRINGWATER, N.Y. — A man is charged with murder after Livingston County sheriff’s deputies say he shot and killed his girlfriend on Sunday night at a home in Springwater.
Christopher Smith, 26, is also charged with criminal use of a firearm and menacing. He’s accused of killing 42-year-old Shannon Knapp.
Livingston County Sheriff Thomas Dougherty spoke about the arrest at a news conference on Tuesday. He said deputies got to a call just after 11 p.m. for a woman shot. At the scene, deputies found the victim dead and another person there. Investigators later learned that a total of four people were in the area when the shooting happened.
“Sometimes we get called, and it really is trying to figure out who did it. This is not a case of that. There were people on scene that witnessed it that were involved. So this case is different,” Dougherty said.
According to Dougherty, the case is “complicated” because it involves a roommate and the victim’s estranged husband, along with the boyfriend and girlfriend. He said Smith wasn’t at the scene when deputies arrived, but they found and arrested him soon after at his home.
Dougherty also said the roommate was the other person at the scene and the one who called 911. Soon after the shooting, the estranged husband came to the sheriff’s office lobby. Dougherty said he couldn’t share any further details in the case because he doesn’t want to hinder the prosecution.
“Friends and family of Shannon are going to have questions. But also, we have to make sure that we protect the integrity of the case to make sure that justice is served for Shannon as well,” he said.
District Attorney Ashley Williams also spoke at the conference, saying she couldn’t share details on the motive because the grand jury is still pending. You can watch the full news conference here:
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