For 183 days at the beginning of 2024, Ian Smith sat in a locked jail cell in the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, sure that he should by then be freed. 

According to a lawsuit filed earlier this month by Smith, a combination of clerical errors and failures by Dallas County officials in charge of the jail processing system led to Smith’s overincarceration by half a year, a violation of his constitutional rights under the Fourth, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. The filing states that the overserved time was due to a district clerk’s miscalculation of time already served, resulting in a “320-day error” that took months to correct. 

Smith’s attorneys claim that “even the most cursory review” of the records would have shown the “glaring discrepancy” between the clerk’s calculation and the time Smith had already served, but no such review process exists within Dallas County. The Dallas County District Attorney’s office declined to comment on the lawsuit. 

“[Mr. Smith] suffered concrete and devastating injuries — including profound humiliation, shame, fright, mental anguish and loss of enjoyment of life — for which he seeks full recovery,” the lawsuit states. “For 183 days, Mr. Smith was deprived of his freedom, his ability to earn a living, and his participation in daily life — all because Dallas County could not be bothered to verify a simple calculation.”

Smith, originally from Plano, has been convicted multiple times of charges related to stalking female SMU students. He was most recently arrested in July 2025, according to a university bulletin, in connection with online threats made against the university. 

In 2023, Smith was convicted of obstruction/retaliation, a third-degree felony, for threatening to harm a woman. After pleading guilty, Smith was sentenced to two years’ incarceration. At that time, he had already served 540 days of jail time that was to be shaved off the sentence, the lawsuit states, which should have seen him released by Sept. 13, 2023. 

Instead, Smith remained in custody until March 13, 2024. After officials recognized the issue, it took nine additional days for Smith to be released. 

While Smith has since gone on to reoffend, attorney Jim Spangler cautions against using that as a reason to be ambivalent about his client’s overserved time. The case represents a fundamental breakdown pervading the Dallas County justice system, he said. 

“When people are held for months past their due date, that undoes all that work that the criminal justice system is supposed to do,” Spangler told the Observer. “It’s unfair, and it’s unjust. The system has gone through the process to try and make it as fair and just as possible; it’s listened to all the voices, and they’ve come to an outcome in this case that everyone agreed to. And the fact that he had to do more time is fundamentally unfair.” 

There is no state law that punishes municipalities for overdetentions. Additionally, no state agency officially tracks the number of Texans who overserve their sentences annually, but the issue has been reported in Dallas County for years. In 2023, the Observer found that a shift to the court management software Odyssey — which Smith’s lawsuit repeatedly cites as one of the factors contributing to his overdetainment — was causing inmates to overstay their sentences by days or weeks. 

According to the Texas Tribune, Dallas County has settled three lawsuits in the last two years filed by inmates who accused the county of failing to release them on time. The settlements have cost Dallas County nearly $250,000, money meant to compensate for missed job interviews or evictions that can result when a person is held in jail longer than planned. 

The Tribune article references at least one other individual, a woman arrested for misdemeanor drug possession and violating parole in December, who intends to sue Dallas County for the 49 extra days that she was kept in jail this year. 

To completely blame Dallas County’s processing system, Odyssey, for overserved time would be to scapegoat a recently-introduced software for a decades-old problem, said Spangler. County officials approved the program in April 2022, and it went into effect in May 2023, meaning the miscalculation of Smith’s time served occurred before the county installed the software. According to the lawsuit, one former public defender admitted to knowing of “at least 30” cases of over-detention before the Odyssey system’s implementation.

At the core of the issue is a failure to properly train district clerks in calculating time served, something that “they have a responsibility to get right,” as the sole determinants of when a person walks free, Spangler said. Additionally, “the county has failed to put proper checks in place” to prevent the issue, despite knowing it occurs.

A software-specific issue is that Odyssey is used by the courts but it is not integrated with the jail system. This can result in clerks failing to see time that may have been served in other counties, and prevents electronic communication between the justice and enforcement agencies. According to the lawsuit, as of fall 2025, district clerks were required to “print the information” from Odyssey “onto paper, then physically deliver it” to the sheriff’s office. 

According to the Texas Tribune, Dallas County is expected to be one of the first testing grounds for a new Texas Department of Criminal Justice program that formalizes communication between courts and jails, which may help prevent future overdetentions. 

“People know when they’re supposed to get out. They are counting down the days and when they don’t [get released on time], it is just an extremely stressful situation,” said Spangler. “It’s really challenging time to do, especially when you think you’re supposed to be out and when you have people calling on your behalf. In [Smith’s] case, he even had an attorney ultimately working on his case. But a clerical error is just holding you in jail for months. It’s just one of those things that is really hard.”

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The latest edition of the Best of the Gridiron Awards show is in the books.

Presented by the Augusta Sports Council, here’s a full list of the high school football athletes recognized for their performances during the 2025 season.

GEORGIA — FIRST TEAM

Offense

• QB: Mekhi Wade — Lincoln County
• RB: Tamari Curry — Westside
• RB: Kelby Glaze — Lincoln County
• WR: Jayden Futrell — Harlem
• WR: Jaris Sinkfield — Thomson
• OL: Solomon Mathis — Hephzibah
• OL: Carter Messick — Grovetown
• OL: Bryan Sapp — Burke County
• OL: Liam Thompson — Harlem

Special Teams / Flex

• Athlete: Jack Rhodes — Aquinas
• Kicker: Fortson Partridge — Lincoln County
• Punter: Shelton Freeman — Westside

Defense

• DL: De’Antre Charles — Westside
• DL: TK Reeves — Burke County
• DL: Marcus Taylor — Laney
• DL: Jeremiah Wynn — Lincoln County
• LB: Chase Burley — Westside
• LB: Logan Heyward — Hephzibah
• LB: Elijah Hutchinson — Aquinas
• LB: Marty Thomas — ARC
• DB: Kennedi Bailey — Thomson
• DB: Brennen Bjorkman — Greenbrier
• DB: Zay Brinson — Thomson
• DB: Joshua Crawford — Westside

SOUTH CAROLINA — FIRST TEAM

Offense

• QB: Xavier Geter — Midland Valley
• RB: Michael Doe — North Augusta
• RB: Preston Smith — Midland Valley
• WR: Kyson McLeod — South Aiken
• WR: Shaheed Williams — Strom Thurmond
• OL: Carter Boatwright — Strom Thurmond
• OL: Malcolm Gaston — North Augusta
• OL: Damien McIntosh — Aiken
• OL: Seth Short — North Augusta

Special Teams / Flex

• Athlete: Kaleb Simpkins — Strom Thurmond
• Kicker: Jacob DeGennaro — North Augusta
• Punter: Knox Young — South Aiken

Defense

• DL: Simeon Jones — North Augusta
• DL: Davion McKinnis — North Augusta
• DL: Brandon Poston — Aiken
• DL: Keyaideen Williams — Silver Bluff
• LB: Grayson Kitchings — Aiken
• LB: Jalen McGraw — Bamberg-Ehrhardt
• LB: Akiem Mills — Ridge Spring-Monetta
• LB: Deonte Phillips — Strom Thurmond
• DB: Donte Bell — North Augusta
• DB: Jaiden Holloway — Ridge Spring-Monetta
• DB: Mekhi Quiller — Fox Creek
• DB: Dallas Williams — North Augusta

Along with the over 50 award winners, the event also recognized the nation’s top Division-1 and FCS college punters.

Georgia’s Brett Thorson took home the 2025 Ray Guy Award back in December.

The born and raised Australian punted 42 times during Georgia’s 2025 season, averaging 45-yards per punt.

“Obviously, Georgia is home for me. Obviously, I don’t have a hometown that I have any bias to, so since moving here, Georgia has been home for me. It’s an extreme honor to keep it, and to know Ray was from Georgia himself is a nice little bit of icing on top,” said Thorson.

The Citadel’s James Platte was awarded the FCS Punter of the Year Award.

An award that seemed way out of reach during his early playing days.

“It’s a dream come true. Growing up always seeing all the Ray Guy awards coming out of here, especially when I was getting into punting a lot heavier in high school. It was always an aspiration and if you told me six years ago I was going to be here, I probably would have called you a liar,” said Platte.

Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

WASHINGTON – Community members gathered on Tuesday night to review redevelopment plans for the RFK Stadium site and offer feedback as the Washington Commanders prepare for a return to the District.

The steel structure of the old stadium has now been removed, and officials say comments on the project’s environmental impact statement are due at the end of April. The final master plan is taking shape with input from residents.

Community gathers for RFK stadium site open house meeting as Commanders prepare for DC return

FOX 5’s Melanie Alnwick said a strong crowd gathered in D.C. Tuesday to speak with developers and city planners. The RFK site is divided into six districts, including the Plaza District, Riverfront District and Stadium District, each with proposed features for residents to evaluate. Members of the community viewed design concepts, asked questions and used green and red stickers to mark what they supported or opposed.

In the Kingman Park District, a primarily residential area, residents raised concerns about preserving green space and the placement of parking garages.

Groundbreaking for the Plaza District is scheduled for 2029, with the stadium targeted to open in 2030. The Commanders are investing $2.7 billion in the project, the largest private investment in city history, with another $1 billion coming from D.C. taxpayers.

City leaders say the redevelopment could create up to 6,500 housing units, 30,000 construction jobs, 2,000 permanent jobs and generate an estimated $5.1 billion in tax revenue.

Community gathers for RFK stadium site open house meeting as Commanders prepare for DC return

Another community meeting is set for Saturday at St. Coletta Church, with a site walk planned in April.  More online.

St. Coletta Meeting Details

• When: Saturday, March 28, 10 am to 12 pm 
• Where: St. Coletta of Greater Washington, 1901 Independence Avenue SE (Closest Metro: Stadium-Armory) 

Online Survey

For those unable to attend an in-person event, the District will offer an online survey where residents can provide feedback on the master plan. The survey will request input on topics similar to those discussed at the events. The Office of Planning will combine this feedback with comments received at the in-person events, via email, and at the community visioning meetings that were held from October 2025 through February 2026.

• The survey link will be available from March 30-April 10 at OurRFK.dc.gov.

Community Site Walk

On Saturday, April 18, neighbors of the RFK Stadium campus are invited to join a walking tour led by staff from the Office of Planning. The walk will include visits to areas that are important to the redevelopment and stopping points for discussion. This interactive outdoor workshop will allow stakeholders to step into the shoes of a planner and share their ideas for the site’s future. 

• When: Saturday, April 18, 10 am 
• Where: Stadium-Armory Metro Station, 192 19th Street SE 
• RSVP: A registration link will be available soon at OurRFK.dc.gov.