Fourteenth Circuit Court Judge Mike Taylor called a formerBrookhaven Fire Department assistant chief reckless duringsentencing on one count of aggravated assault and four counts ofsimple assault Thursday.

Fred Smith Jr., 52, of 300 Greenwood Lane, was sentenced to 15years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections,a $10,000 fine, court costs and other associated fees foraggravated assault on his stepdaughter, Sheena Tillman, 25, ofLincoln County. Smith will serve eight years with the remainingseven years suspended pending completion of probation.

The judge also granted a request from the district attorney’soffice that two handguns associated with the crime be confiscatedand turned over to the sheriff’s department.

Smith also received six months to serve for each of the foursimple assault convictions resulting from others in the vehicleduring the shooting incident.

Thursday’s sentences will run concurrently with a March sentenceof five years to serve with 18 months suspended, a $2,000 fine andother costs for shooting into a vehicle.

Smith was convicted in March of shooting into a vehicle, but thejury deadlocked on the assault charges. He was convicted Wednesdayof the assault charges following a second trial.

The convictions stem from an incident on Thanksgiving Day 2005.Smith and his wife were home when Tillman, three of her cousins andtwo children visited the house. The visit lead to a domesticdispute that ended with Smith firing into the vehicle.

No one was injured in the incident. Smith never denied firinginto the vehicle, but claimed no one was in the vehicle at thetime.