Court records have detailed new information in the case of LaMarcus Smith, a former deputy with Harris County Constable Precinct 4 who was charged with his wife’s murder.
On May 27, 2024, Laura Smith, 37, was found dead lying on the bed inside the couple’s home in the 6500 block of Snowbell Court in Richmond, Texas.
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On May 28, Laura Smith’s death was ruled a homicide. The manner of death was described as stabbing with a sharp object.
Laura was an elementary school educator in Lamar Consolidated Independent School District.
LaMarcus, 39, was charged with murder by Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office on Nov. 10, 2025. He was also charged with fraud by possession of an identification.
He was given bail amounts of $500,000 for the murder charge and $7,500 for the fraud charge.
A search warrant filed on Dec. 2, 2025, provided new information on the case, including evidence of a reported mistress, whom LaMarcus described in a voluntary interview with investigators as a “female friend.”
Authorities recovered images of evidence from the affair, including matching tattoos, an engagement ring, numerous phone calls, and life insurance activity.
Court records also allege that LaMarcus posed as his mistress’ husband on a phone call with an insurance provider, as the duo attempted to alter records of the mistress’ husband’s life insurance policy.
The Day of the Murder
Investigators with the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office were called to the Smith household on May 27. There, Laura Smith was found dead in her bed. Documents state she was covered in blood, and a dumbbell weight was found on top of her left arm.
Earlier that day, at 11:54 a.m., Laura’s sister requested a welfare check after Laura had not responded to phone calls for approximately 12 hours.
That afternoon, LaMarcus voluntarily went to the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office to speak with investigators, who made it clear that he was not under arrest at that time.
LaMarcus’ Interview with Investigators
During the interview, LaMarcus told investigators that, after leaving work at Precinct 4 on the evening of Saturday, May 25, he went to a woman’s residence. He described the woman as a “female friend,” and stayed at her home until approximately 3:45 a.m.
LaMarcus said that at around 10 p.m. on Sunday, May 26, he left Precinct 4 and drove toward the site of his second job, where he planned to start at 4 a.m. the next morning. However, he said he was unable to sleep near the job because trains were passing nearby, so he decided to go back to the home he shared with Laura and his daughters.
Lamarcus said he arrived home around midnight but found his bedroom door locked. He said he called out for Laura but received no response and believed she may have locked the door because she was upset with him. He told investigators he sat on the living room couch and texted his wife but did not receive a response.
After not getting a text back, LaMarcus said he took a shower in their daughter’s bathroom, put on civilian clothes for his second job, and left the house at approximately 3:15 a.m., arriving at work before his shift started.
When he spoke to FBCSO, LaMarcus also gave consent for investigators to search his phone.
The Investigation
Investigators said they collected evidence that connects LaMarcus to a series of communications, insurance activity, and alleged solicitations involving the woman he described as a “female friend,” as well as events surrounding the death of his wife.
Phone records included in the warrant show LaMarcus contacted his mistress multiple times before and after Laura was last heard from.
On May 26, 2024, at 10:22 p.m., LaMarcus spoke with his mistress for approximately five and a half minutes. On May 27 at 9:28 a.m., he called her again and spoke for 42 minutes, just hours before his wife’s body would be discovered.
More than eight months after Laura’s death, investigators received a phone call that would flip the case on its head.
On Feb. 19, 2025, authorities were contacted by a man who identified himself as the husband of LaMarcus’ “female friend.”
The man told investigators that he received a notice dated Feb. 5, 2024, indicating that changes had been made to his life insurance policy. At the time, he was unaware of these adjustments.
The man said he contacted the insurance company and discovered that his wife had called the company while she was with a man who identified himself as her husband. The man used her husband’s Social Security number and date of birth for verification, court records said.
A subpoena was issued for phone call recordings from the insurance company on Feb. 25, 2025. Investigators said these recordings contained audio of two people making the call. Authorities confirmed that they matched the voices to the mistress LaMarcus, who was allegedly impersonating the woman’s husband.
During the recorded call, the phone number associated with the policy was changed to the mistress’ phone number, and the policy amount was revealed to be $100,000.
The mistress was also heard asking, “So God forbid, if something were to happen to my husband and he dies, I get paid one hundred thousand dollars?”
Additional allegations involving LaMarcus and his mistress surfaced later in 2025.
On June 26, LaMarcus’ sister-in-law contacted authorities. She told them that her husband—LaMarcus’ brother—told her LaMarcus had approached him offering payment to “take out” his mistress’ husband. She also reported LaMarcus had previously approached her husband about taking out another man for payment.
LaMarcus’ sister later told investigators that her brother told her that LaMarcus had offered him $40,000 or $50,000 to take out his mistress’ husband.
On Aug. 25, 2025, investigators found text messages sent from LaMarcus sent to another individual that included images of his mistress wearing an engagement ring while lying in bed. LaMarcus told the individual he had given her the ring and expressed his love for her.
On Aug. 26, 2025, investigators contacted a tattoo artist who said he performed matching tattoos on the backs of LaMarcus Smith and his mistress. The artist identified the woman from photographs, and images of the tattoos were found on Lamarcus’ phone.
She said two days later, the same brother warned her to be careful about what she discussed because the “house might be bugged by the police.”