Reno man gets life in prison for killing his 75-year-old father

RENO, Nev. (KOLO) -A Reno man has been sentenced to life in prison with a chance of parole for beating his elderly father to death in January 2020, the Washoe County District Attorney’s Office said Tuesday.

Darnell Solis Smith, 39, will have to serve at least 20 years before he is eligible for parole, the district attorney’s office said. He also got a prison sentence of five to 20 years, to be served consecutively, for committing the crime on an elderly person.

Police arrived at the home of the deceased 75-year-old father on Jan. 9, 2020, and found him dead and wrapped in a blanket. Smith, who also lived at in the home, told police he killed his father because he thought his father was in an ongoing relationship with Smith’s girlfriend, giving her money in exchange for sexual favors. Also, Smith became agitated his father was making too much noise one morning, so Smith pushed him to the floor and slammed his head into the floor five times.

An autopsy showed the father died from blunt force trauma to the head.