EVERETT — Chad Smith loved his younger sister and wanted to protect her from a group of men he thought were dangerous.
That’s what got him killed, police and neighbors say.
Smith, 24, of Everett was shot to death Sunday night after he was confronted by several of those men, Everett police said.
Neighbors believe Smith came to pick up his troubled sister Amber, 22, that night.
"He had a really big heart and he loved his family," neighbor Melissa Saenz said. "He would have done anything for them."
Smith was killed near his father’s and sister’s Lombard Avenue apartment. He died in his Pontiac Firebird, which came to rest in an alley between Lombard Avenue and Broadway.
Three people were detained Sunday night and questioned, but they were released, Everett Police Department spokesman Boyd Bryant said. No arrests have been made.
Police do not know where Amber Smith was the night her brother died. She hasn’t spoken with officers yet, Bryant said.
Before her brother’s death, she’d been spending time with a group of six to 10 men in their late teens or early 20s who occasionally stayed at her apartment, said Deanna Archer, who lives across the street.
The men were there that weekend, taunting passing drivers, she said.
"It looked like a gang took over the corner," Archer said.
Neighbors said they saw the same men drive away after Sunday’s shooting.
Chad Smith disliked the men and didn’t want them at the apartment, said another neighbor, Adam Thompson, 18.
"Her brother was just trying to get her out of that environment," said Thompson, who heard four shots fired Sunday.
The apartment was the home of the Smiths’ father, Cary Smith, until he required full-time treatment for cancer, Saenz said.
Chad Smith, who had gotten a job and moved out at age 21, was watching the place, she said.
"Chad had all of his stuff together," she said. "He was a great guy."
Amber Smith, whose criminal record includes a 1999 conviction in King County for promoting prostitution, seemed to be struggling, Saenz said.
"I hope this opens Amber’s eyes," she said.
Neighbors have set up a memorial for Chad Smith in the alley where his body was found. They brought candles, flowers and taped up signs that read, "Chad we love you."
Reporter Katherine Schiffner: 425-339-3436 or schiffner@heraldnet.com.
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