MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – An Anoka County judge sentenced a 35-year-old man to 12 years in prison for beating up his 81-year-old father and threatening him with a handgun, authorities said.
A jury found Reid Otis Smith guilty of first-degree assault, second-degree assault and terroristic threats after he beat his father, Otis David Smith, with his fists and household objects, the Anoka County Attorney’s Office said.
Otis Smith said in testimony that during the beating his son told him: “Today is the day we’re both going to die.”
Before leaving his father, Reid Smith pulled out a handgun and shot a bullet into a family portrait.
Police responded to the scene after Otis Smith, covered in blood, tried to flag down passing cars near his East Bethel home.
Judge Jenny Jasper sentenced Reid Smith to 144 months in prison. That sentence exceeds the normal sentencing range for the crime by 41 months. But due to the nature of the assault, the prosecution asked for a longer sentence, the attorney’s office said.
