Stephen A. Smith is arguably the most-well known sports commentator in the country. But the outspoken ESPN commentatorโs perspective outside the sports arena has landed him in a firestorm.
The furor is due to his pointed comments defending an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot a Minneapolis woman driving away from him.
Just hours after the shooting on Wednesday, Smith said on his SiriusXM โStraight Shooterโ talk show that although the killing of Renee Nicole Good was โcompletely unnecessary,โ he added that the agent โfrom a lawful perspectiveโ was โcompletely justifiedโ in firing his gun at her.
He also noted, โFrom a humanitarian perspective, however, why did he have to do that?โ
Smithโs comments about the agent being in harmโs way echoed the views of Deputy of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who said Good engaged in an โact of domestic terrorismโ by attacking officers and attempting to run them over with her vehicle.
However, videos showing the incident from different angles indicate that the agent was not standing directly in front of Goodโs vehicle when he opened fire on her. Local officials contend that Good posed no danger to ICE officers. A video posted by partisan media outlet Alpha News showed Good talking to agents before the shooting, saying, โIโm not mad at you.โ
The shooting has sparked major protests and accusations from local officials that the presence of ICE has been disruptive and escalated violence. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frye condemned ICE, telling agents to โget the fโ out of our city.โ
The incident, in turn, has put a harsher spotlight on Smith, raising questions on whether he was reckless or irresponsible in offering his views on Goodโs shooting when he had no direct knowledge of what had transpired.
An angered Smith appeared on his โStraight Shooterโ show on YouTube on Friday, saying the full context of his comments had not been conveyed in media reports, specifically calling out the New York Post and media personality Keith Olbermann, while saying that people were trying to get him fired.
He also doubled down on his contention that Good provoked the situation that led to her death, saying the ICE agent was in front of Goodโs car and would have been run over had he not stepped out of the way.
โIn the moment when you are dealing with law enforcement officials, you obey their orders so you can get home safely,โ he said. โRenee Good did not do that.โ
When reached for comment about his statements, a representative for Smith said his response was in Fridayโs show.
Itโs not the first time Smith, who has suggested heโs interesting in going into politics, has sparked outside the sports universe. He and journalist Joy Reid publicly quarreled following her exit last year from MSNBC.
He also faced backlash from Black media personalities and others when he accused Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas of using โstreet verbiageโ in her frequent criticisms of President Trump.
โThe way that Jasmine Crockett chooses to express herself … Arenโt you there to try and get stuff done instead of just being an impediment? โIโm just going to go off about Trump, cuss him out every chance I get, say the most derogatory things imaginable, and thatโs my dayโs work?โ That ainโt work! Work is, this is the man in power. I know what his agenda is. Maybe I try to work with this man. I might get something out of it for my constituents.โ โ