The Ronni Chasen murder mystery is far from over. It’s highly probable that the so-called “suspect” who shot himself had nothing to do with it. Harold Smith, who had lived in the low rent Harvey Apartments, had a history of arrests and incarcerations for burglary, robbery, drugs and firearms. His neighbors agreed he was strange, crazy, paranoid, and most didn’t believe his babblings – even when he supposedly bragged about killing “the publicist.” (The reward prompted someone to report him anyway and cops started tracking his moves.) He did vow that he’d rather die than return to prison. Several burglaries had occurred in the neighborhood and Smith, who had moved out of the building, returned several times to ASK if cops were looking for him. Police confronted him in the lobby and before they could say a word, he shot himself. It’s entirely possible that this mental case thought he was being arrested for the burglaries- and he couldn’t face prison again. What’s more, it’s common knowledge that Harold Smith rode a bicycle. Odds of this crackpot being hired to “off” anybody are slim, indeed. Police are hoping bullets connect the suicide and the murder but we seriously doubt that a delusional man on a bicycle had anything to do with this crime.
