Woman sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison for role in New Year’s Eve killing in Spokane Valley

A judge last week sentenced a 32-year-old woman to 6½ years in prison for her role in the killing of Christopher Smith on New Year’s Eve 2020 outside a Spokane Valley nursing home.

Krystal M. Johnson pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter Nov. 4 before Spokane County Superior Court Judge Rachelle Anderson handed down the low end of the standard sentencing range, according to court documents. The range was 6½ years to 8½ years of incarceration.

Smith, 35, was robbed, shot and killed during a fight with Joseph Gray, 30, near the Brookdale Park Place nursing home after a drug deal went wrong, documents said.

Gray was sentenced one month ago to nine years in prison for first-degree robbery. Gray was convicted of the robbery but acquitted of murder.

Gray purchased drugs from Smith, but Gray later confronted Smith to claim the drugs were “garbage,” according to court documents. Smith ran away, and Gray found Smith near the nursing home and asked , “Where’s my money?”

The two men fought when Gray pulled off a fanny pack from Smith and the two separated. Gray then pulled out a pistol and shot Smith, documents said. Smith was taken to a hospital, where he died.

A witness heard a woman, later identified as Johnson, yell, “Get him, get him,” moments before the two men fought, according to documents. The witness said Johnson was “egging on” one of the men, later identified as Gray.

Gray and Johnson fled the area after the shooting, documents said.

Johnson told police she did not try to stop the altercation between the two men but said she did not think it would escalate to a shooting.

According to a victim impact statement from Andrea Nagle to the court, Nagle wrote she and Smith “were building a life together” and bought a home two months prior to his death. She said Smith purchased two rings one week prior to his death – an engagement ring for her and the other ring for their daughter, Ellanor.

“We had planned many things together and now I have the added stress of planning/budgeting to adjust to support our daughter all on my own,” Nagle wrote.

She said their daughter was also impacted by his death.

“Chris was always very hands on with Ellanor, there wasn’t much he would say no to and the two went on many adventures together,” Nagle wrote.

Johnson, who was listed as a Spokane County Jail inmate Friday night, was arrested Jan. 13, 2021. She will serve three years of probation when she is released from custody.