Murder, Hostage Scene Ended with Final Shot,
Gunman Killed When He Aimed Gun at Police

By Kenneth C. Rossignol
ST. MARY'S TODAY

Live coverage on this story since 6:00 am

CALIFORNIA, MD. --- Rt. 4 Now Open for traffic!
Victim, Gunman and Hostage Identified
--- Man Killed Girlfriend, Took Hostage, Shot Dead by Police
--- Gunman threatened to kill a Swat Team Officer, pinpointed him by location and said he had a clear shot, said the Hollywood movie "Set it Off" was his inspiration
--- Sheriff Says No Deputies Were Injured in Standoff
Despite earlier reports that a deputy had been shot, no officers were injured in this morning's murder and hostage seige which ended about
8 am with a final shot...
CALIFORNIA  ( 12:20 pm  - March 8 )
Live conference call with Sheriff David Zylak, Maryland State Police Captain Mike Spaulding and Southern Region Major Andrew McAndrew:  

St. Mary's Sheriff David Zylak
"The hostage was uninjured," said Sheriff Zylak. "The suspect came out with what appeared to be a gun and pointed it at officers, he was told repeatedly to put it down and when he aimed what appeared to be a gun at officers he was fatally shot.  The gunman was Joseph Herbert Smith Jr. 33, of Prince Frederick, and also had lived in Huntingtown, both in Calvert County.  The victim was Ayanna Lashey Taylor, 32."
Sheriff Zylak said that Smith had a criminal record including domestic assault cases in Calvert County but his record in St. Mary's has not yet been pulled, therefore it was not possible at this time to determine if recent police calls for domestic disturbances at Burkes Trailer Park were for Smith. 
"The officers had no choice but to fire their weapons," said Zylak.   Major McAndrews and Capt. Spaulding agreed with the Sheriff in the LIVE conference call with ST. MARY'S TODAY ONLINE EDITION.  
"The scene started in one trailer where Smith shot Taylor and then he went down with his shotgun to Taylor's aunt's residence where he took her hostage," said Sheriff Zylak. "We learned that the gun he held on the officers when he came outside was the barrel of the shotgun and he had taken the stock and had it under his jacket, but he pointed the gun barrel as if to fire when the officers fired and fatally wounded him."
Identified by Sheriff Zylak as the hostage, was the dead woman's aunt, Deklaya Taylor.
--  The St. Mary's Sheriff's Crime lab was brought in to the command post and told there are two separate crime scenes to investigate.  The hostage is reported to be uninjured.
Sheriff Zylak reports that the St. Andrews Church Road (Rt. 4) will be closed down next to Burkes Trailer Park for hours yet as the internal affairs and crime lab personnel investigate what has now been confirmed to be two shootings. 
The gunman warned a police negotiator he was going to shoot a cop and pinpointed one deputy on the St. Mary's Sheriff's swat team who was wearing body armor and had on green pants. The deputy was told to conceal himself and didn't. Gunman was reported to be increasingly hostile just before the scene ended.
Just before the final  shot, the gunman tells police that he is inspired by movie "Set it Off" and liked the scene where a gunman burst out of a house and killed as many police as he could....threatens to kill a Swat Team officer with green pants hiding next to a tan and brown trailer, where he told an officer on a phone line that he had a pretty good line of sight and could plug the cop...the cop in jeopardy was warned but still did not move to conceal himself, his commander said he would "advise him again"...
Man Used Shotgun, says St. Mary's Sheriff David Zylak
State Police Trooper Matt Davis  first arrived on the scene of a murder at Burkes Trailer Park, where there have been numerous recent calls for domestic disturbances, to find a man had shot dead a woman and was holding another person hostage.   Police cannot confirm if today's murder took place at the same residence where recent calls took place.
The man shot dead a woman in one trailer and then broke into another to hold the person inside that home hostage at 5:27 am, according to Cpl. William Rosado of the Leonardtown Barracks.
Since the trailer at which the gunman was holed up is within a clear line of sight to the BJ's and other retail locations at the First Colony Shopping center, some stores at the center were being held back from opening and the intersection at St. Andrews Church Road (Rt. 4) was also being shut down. 
In spite of the massive police presense, one motorist was able to penetrate the police lines in order to get to the gas pumps at BJ's, where he was intercepted by police.