A Quest Cut Short : Friends Say Slain Woman’s Drive Was for Better Life for Self, Son

CANOGA PARK —  Michele Dawn Smith spent her life running and seeking, racing determinedly down the track to a brighter future, searching for the knowledge that would bring a better life for herself and her son.

A few weeks ago, when Smith, a 23-year-old single mother, had to write a paper on death for a class at Pierce College, she had to gather information by asking friends how their families dealt with it. Death was no part of her own plans.

The end of those plans could be seen Tuesday in a pile of sympathy cards, burning candles and clusters of flowers left at the spot on Saticoy Street where Smith was killed Monday by a robber who shot her to death for refusing to give up her purse as she made a brief trip out of her apartment to buy cigarettes.

One friend had scribbled a last message: “To my Red Sonja , be well and be safe,” a reference to a character in science fiction who, like Smith, was a strong woman distinguished by a mass of fiery red hair.

In her desolate apartment Tuesday stood a glass of juice on the counter, left by Smith to finish when she returned from her errand a block away.

Dashing out in mid-drink typified Smith, a bundle of energy who raced from school to her sales job at Mervyn’s to her kitchen, where she would whip up exotic dishes for friends and her 3-year-old son, Cameron.

Smith was always searching--for new recipes, for new books to read and new places to go--and working her way through college to get ahead.

“She knew that to get a better life for Cameron, she would have to make some sacrifices now,” said Johnny Little, a friend and roommate. “She was doing that and doing it very well.”

Just two weeks ago, Smith visited UC Santa Barbara to consider transferring there for a bachelor’s degree when she finished the two-year curriculum at Pierce. Her roommate said she treasured a UC Santa Barbara sweat shirt she bought there, seeing it as a symbol of a blossoming future.

Witnesses said Smith was approached by a robber about 1:30 p.m. Monday who shot her point-blank in the chest when she refused to surrender her purse, breaking the strap as they tugged at it, police said. The killer trotted away as onlookers ran for cover or watched in shock. Smith died at the scene.

Los Angeles Police Detective Rick Swanston said officers are still searching for suspects in the case. City Councilwoman Laura Chick, who represents the area, said she will urge the council to offer a $25,000 reward for information in the shooting.

“This type of cruel crime makes no sense,” Chick said in a statement. “People cannot be calmed by recent statistics that suggest a drop in serious crime. Random violence of this type negates any sense of calm or perception that our public safety is improving.”

Swanston said there is no indication that drugs were involved in the shooting or that Smith knew the gunman.

The close group of residents at the Sungate Apartments where Smith lived with her son huddled together Tuesday afternoon, sharing photos and memories of their friend.

As children played in the courtyard, Ruth Willis reminisced over how Smith took care of the building’s flock.

“She collected kids,” Willis said. “Kids were always playing in her apartment. If we wondered where the kids were, all we had to do was look in her apartment.”

An inquisitive mind thirsty for knowledge, both mundane and exciting, is what drove the San Fernando Valley native, friends said.

Although she was a microbiology major at Pierce, she wrote poetry in French and English. One of her works, “The Four Elements,” detailed the struggles of an everyday man.

Hours before she was slain, Smith had been stringing together paper Christmas angels for Cameron, her child by a high school sweetheart in Simi Valley.

The boy traveled virtually everywhere with his mother. “Her son was exactly the same as her,” Little said. “He could never sit down.”

While his mother attended classes, Cameron would stay at the college’s preschool.

When the work and school day ended, Smith would lock herself in her room, using the brash sound of hard rock to write soft, poetic words about people, about life. Little said the shooter must have been particularly desperate or cold, killing Little’s roommate in broad daylight, just a half block from her apartment.

“All of us have walked to that store a million times,” said Little somberly. “A million times.”

“This was such a waste,” he said. “The saddest thing is that there is a 3-year-old boy who will only be able to remember his mother through pictures.”

The son is now staying with her parents.

Neighbors and friends said they will continue to search for their friend’s killer, hoping for some type of justice.

“The individual that did this needs to see what he took from this child,” Little said. “He took away her sparkle for $10. That is something that will stay with me forever. If I have to go to bed every night thinking about this, then somehow, somewhere, someone else will have to also.”

Times correspondent Nicholas Riccardi contributed to this story.