Francis Clifford Smith, a Connecticut prisoner believed to have been the oldest and longest-serving inmate in the United States, has died at the age of 101. Smith spent more than seven decades behind bars after being convicted in connection with the 1949 killing of a night watchman. He maintained his innocence throughout his life and was ultimately released under supervised parole in 2020.
Smith Spent More Than 70 Years in Prison
Smith was 25 when he was convicted of first-degree murder in 1950 for the killing of Grover Hart, a night watchman at the Indian Harbor Yacht Club in Greenwich, Connecticut.
Hart was shot during an early-morning robbery on July 23, 1949. Investigators connected Smith to the case through largely circumstantial evidence, including a vehicle and property linked to the robbery.
Smith consistently denied taking part in the killing. Questions surrounding his conviction continued for years, including claims from another prisoner who said he had been involved in the crime instead.
Despite those developments, Smith remained imprisoned for decades.
Eight Execution Dates Were Set
Smith was originally sentenced to death and was reportedly scheduled for execution eight different times. Each execution was ultimately avoided, and his death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 1954.
His long imprisonment included a 1967 escape, when he remained at large for 12 days before being captured. He was later granted parole in the 1970s but returned to prison after violating its conditions.
Smith eventually accepted supervised release in 2020 and moved to a nursing facility serving older people who had been involved with the criminal justice system.
Remembered as the “Birdman of Osborn”
During his years at Osborn Correctional Institution, Smith developed a reputation for feeding birds around the prison. He reportedly saved bread from the dining hall to give to them, earning the nickname “Birdman of Osborn.”
Smith died peacefully in his sleep in June while living under supervised parole at a nursing facility. A facility spokesperson described his death as essentially resulting from old age.
Smith was later cremated. His death closes the extraordinary chapter of a man who spent more than 70 years in prison, survived repeated execution dates and continued to insist until the end of his life that he had been wrongly convicted.
