Dallas Mavericks help Dorian Finney-Smith's father secure parole after 29 years in prison

27.07.2023 23:13

Contractually, Dorian Finney-Smith’s seven-season Mavericks tenure ended on Feb. 6, when he was traded to Brooklyn as part of the Kyrie Irving-to-Dallas blockbuster. Personally, Finney-Smith’s bond with the Mavericks franchise quietly has continued, evidenced Wednesday by a profound occurrence in Richmond, Va. The Virginia Parole Board voted 3-0 to grant conditional freedom to Finney-Smith’s father, Elbert Smith Jr., who has been incarcerated for the last 28 years and four months of Dorian’s 30-year life. “My whole family is in tears,” Finney-Smith told The News shortly after learning of the board’s vote. “It hasn’t set in; probably won’t until I see him out. I haven’t touched my dad since … ever.”
Source: Brad Townsend @ Dallas Morning News

Brad Townsend @townbrad
How Mavericks helped Dorian Finney-Smith secure father’s parole after 29 years in prison dallasnews.com/sports/maveric… – 3:43 PM

Brad Townsend @townbrad
How Mavericks helped Dorian Finney-Smith secure father’s parole after 29 years in prison dallasnews.com/sports/maveric… – 3:41 PM

So compelling was Elbert Smith’s case that the vote’s outcome defied steep odds in a state with historically rigid parole standards. Before Wednesday, the board had granted parole in only 23 of 1,255 cases it had considered in 2023. The news was an answered prayer after a generation of hopelessness for Elbert Smith, 52, and his family. By extension that includes the Mavericks, who helped Elbert’s son navigate a labyrinth of legal and political obstacles to get the parole board to consider the case. -via Dallas Morning News / July 27, 2023

At issue was not Elbert Smith’s guilt or innocence in a Jan. 25, 1995 slaying, but whether the board deemed his prison time and rehabilitation to be sufficient — and whether Dorian’s plans to help Elbert return to society are adequate safeguards for the community. For his conditional release, which is expected to occur in the next few weeks, Elbert Smith largely can thank Dorian, Mark Cuban Companies chief of staff Jason Lutin and former Virginia attorney general Jerry Kilgore. -via Dallas Morning News / July 27, 2023

Nearly three years ago, Finney-Smith explained his father’s circumstances to Lutin, a fellow University of Florida graduate who also holds a law degree from that school. Lutin spent months gathering background about the case and helping Dorian explore legal and political avenues. They turned to Kilgore, Virginia’s 2005 Republican nominee for governor and a partner with the law firm Cozen O’Connor. He met with Elbert Smith in Virginia’s Wallens Ridge supermax prison and offered to represent him pro bono. That was more than two years ago. In Virginia and other case-backlogged states, it takes months and sometimes years for prisoners to have their parole cases considered. -via Dallas Morning News / July 27, 2023

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