West Virginia man pleads guilty in family quadruple murder case

Gavin Smith pleaded guilty on June 22 in Kanawha County Circuit Court, ending the prospect of a second trial in the 2020 killings of his mother, stepfather and two younger brothers in Elkview. Smith, now 22, admitted to one count of first-degree murder and three counts of second-degree murder in a case that had already been sent back for retrial after his earlier convictions were vacated.

The plea came after the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia reversed Smith’s 2022 convictions on June 9, 2025, finding that the trial court had improperly instructed jurors on parole eligibility for a juvenile defendant. Smith was 16 when the four family members were shot to death in the home on Cemetery Hill Drive, and the high court found that the jury had been told he would be eligible for parole after 15 years if convicted of first-degree murder because of his age.

Smith’s earlier sentence had totaled three life terms with mercy plus 50 years, to run consecutively. Under the plea arrangement, he now faces parole eligibility after 15 years on the first-degree murder count, with the remaining second-degree murder terms adding up to “life plus 80,” though some terms will run concurrently. Sentencing is scheduled for July 6 at 10:30 a.m.

The victims were identified in prior court records as Daniel Dale Long, 37; Risa Mae Saunders, 39; Gage Ripley, 12; and Jameson Long, 3. Timothy Saunders, Smith’s grandfather, discovered the bodies in December 2020. Smith was later found at his girlfriend’s grandmother’s home before his arrest.

Rebecca Walker, Smith’s girlfriend at the time, previously pleaded guilty to four counts of accessory after the fact to first-degree murder and received a 10-year sentence. Her plea agreement required her to cooperate and testify against Smith.