BLUEFIELD —
The work of an undercover police officer can be a dangerous and often thankless aspect of law enforcement, but officers who are called to serve in that phase of police work are traditionally very effective in obtaining convictions and putting drug dealers in prison.
In Mercer County, Detective Lt. Charles Jasper Smothers was one of the very best at undercover police work. Smothers was 59 when he lost his battle with cancer on Feb. 12, 2010. He served 22 years as a deputy sheriff — working undercover during the last 11 years of his career in law enforcement. Most of his work was in the field of investigating illegal drug offenders. He averaged 60-70 arrests per year and maintained a near-perfect conviction rate.
To honor Detective Smothers’ commitment to the area, his son and daughter-in-law, Dr. Daniel and Dr. Angel Smothers have established an endowment at Bluefield State College that will help students of southern West Virginia who enter the criminal justice field.
“The endowment will create scholarships that will go to those students from southern West Virginia ... who plan to remain in West Virginia to work with a focus on the drug task force,” Dr. Angel Smothers wrote in an email message announcing the endowment.
The Smothers family plans to announce the creation of the endowment at the memorial service at 6 p.m., Aug. 11, in the Basic Science Auditorium on the BSC campus. The service will include remarks on the state of the drug problem in southern West Virginia by Sgt. Jose Centeno, of the West Virginia State Police, head of the Southern West Virginia Drug and Violent Crime Task Force.
“The memorial service will serve to honor (Det. Smothers’) work, but will also introduce the endowment,” Angel Smothers wrote. Contributions to the endowment can be made to the BSC Foundation, with the designation of the Charles Smothers Foundation.
As a student at Bluefield High School, Charlie Smothers was told he was too small to play football, but he made the Beaver football team and was part of two state championships. He loved all sports and created the Babe Ruth Baseball chapter in Bluefield and led the team to the national championship tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio one year.
Smothers was a master of disguise, who treated other law enforcement officers, the public, and even the suspects he arrested with a high degree of respect. The Smothers family encourages the public to attend the memorial service, which will conclude with refreshments.
— Contact Bill Archer at barcher@bdtonline.com
Local News
July 23, 2012
Family of Det. Lt. Charles Smothers establishes scholarship endowment
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