CHICAGO — Diontay Kimberly has been sentenced to life in prison for the fatal shooting of dance coach Verndell Smith on Chicago’s South Side, prosecutors said.
Kimberly was charged in 2022 with murder after allegedly shooting 32-year-old Smith on May 19, 2021, in a Dunkin’ parking lot near Smith’s dance studio. Surveillance video helped authorities identify Kimberly as the suspect.
Footage captured Kimberly driving into the parking lot at 75th Street and King Drive and opening fire at Smith, who was on his phone. Smith sustained gunshot wounds to the leg, arm, forehead, and torso and was pronounced dead at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Investigators recovered 13 shell casings at the scene.
After the shooting, Kimberly allegedly drove to a nearby car wash, where surveillance video showed his face and truck’s license plate, along with a distinctive gold bracelet. Police attempted a traffic stop but did not take him into custody at that time.
Kimberly was arrested on September 15, 2022, while trying to retrieve his towed vehicle in suburban Evergreen Park. Authorities noted he had a gun at the time, though it was not the weapon used in Smith’s murder.
