Suspects in Smith murder appear in court

Two Harrison County men accused of second-degree murder and felony assault in the death early Friday of Northwest Missouri State University student Tomarkin Smith appeared in the Nodaway County associate division of Circuit Court Tuesday.

It was the first court appearance for Kevin Dell Mooney, 31, and Tony M. Overlin, 23, both of Bethany, who were arrested by Maryville police moments after allegedly attacking Smith shortly before 1:30 a.m. on Market Street just outside Molly's Dance Club & Bar.

Due to a lengthy civil case being tried this week at the courthouse, the suspects appeared separately before associate Circuit Judge Glen Dietrich in an improvised courtroom in the Nodaway County Administration Center just across the street from where Smith was struck down.

With dozens of cases on the docket, space was at a premium in the center's first-floor meeting room, and the legs of Dietrich's plastic chair stood precariously close to the edge of a narrow, roughly built wooden dais as the judge squeezed in behind a portable table.

Mooney, represented by attorney P.J. O'Connor of Kansas City, was the first of the two defendants in the Smith case called before the bench. Clean-shaven, shackled hand and foot, and dressed in jail-orange coveralls, he stood silently while Dietrich read over his right to counsel and reviewed the charges against him.

O'Connor then stated his client's decision to waive formal arraignment and requested that the court reduce the amount of Mooney's $100,000 bond. The motion was opposed by Prosecuting Attorney Robert Rice and rejected by Dietrich, who said that "given the nature of the charge, surety should be required."

The judge then bound the defendant over to Nodaway County Circuit Court, setting Mooney's appearance there for Oct. 16.  

Overlin, who was being held in the Holt County Jail in Oregon (Mo.) in order to keep him separated from Mooney, appeared before Dietrich about a half-hour after his co-defendant was escorted by a deputy sheriff from the administration center.

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Not yet represented by counsel, Overlin, who sports a small, blond goatee and numerous tattoos, including a large image on his neck depicting a set of brass knuckles, told Dietrich he had applied for representation by a public defender.

Also shackled and dressed in jail garb, Overlin listened as the judge read his rights and reviewed the charges and then asked about the process for being granted a change of venue.

Dietrich responded that he would have to take the request up with his attorney once one was assigned.

Because the Overlin lacked representation, Dietrich retained jurisdiction in the case until Nov. 6, when the defendant to again appear in the associate division with his lawyer for formal arraignment. It is likely the case will be moved to Circuit Court at that time.

Overlin is also being held in lieu of $100,000 bond, and it was unclear if he would remain in the Nodaway jail or be transported back to Holt County.   

Mooney and Overlin were arrested after allegedly assaulting Smith, a Northwest senior from suburban St. Louis, several minutes after a scuffle involving the three men inside the tavern.

According to Maryville Public Safety Director Keith Wood, Smith had apparently tried to prevent an intoxicated Mooney and Overlin from "annoying some of the young ladies in Mr. Smith’s group."

Ejected from the bar by two police sergeants, Mooney and Overlin allegedly waited outside of Molly's for Smith to appear and then attacked him. Smith apparently suffered one or two blows to the body before falling to the pavement, striking his head on the concrete and losing consciousness. He died about an hour later at St. Francis Hospital in Maryville.   

If convicted, his alleged attackers could receive prison terms ranging from 10 years to life.