A NIGHTMARE COME TO LIFE

Truman Smith's Self-Defense Story

Discover how USCCA Membership provided critical support to Truman, helping him navigate legal challenges and reclaim his life.

Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Charges: No Charges Filed
Not Guilty: Confidential
$40,053: Legal fees covered

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Truman Smith was 20 years old when he shot the man who had married his mother….

He was cleared of any crime nearly a year later, but it didn't make the year any less stressful.

Truman and Matt Kelley had always gotten along, despite being nothing alike physically ... Truman at 20, average build; Kelley at 6'5" and around 300 pounds, a construction worker who'd married Truman's mother a few years earlier.

Truman knew Kelley had a violent past, admitted alcohol and cocaine abuse, past bar fights, but he'd never witnessed that side of the man firsthand.

Home for the holidays in 2023, Truman brought his firearms rather than leave them with roommates. Kelley had just returned from a work trip, and Truman's mother had shared texts suggesting his decline was accelerating.

That day, an argument between Kelley and Truman's mother turned physical…

Kelley was thrown out of a local bar that night, intoxicated. Police were called but declined to arrest him. On their advice, he was driven back to the house and left to sober up in his car … warned not to go inside. His keys were taken – Truman and his mother locked the doors.

A temporary roommate, unaware Kelley was still outside, opened the garage door. Kelley followed her in.

"He's in the garage!" she shouted. "Get off me!"

Truman grabbed his 12-gauge shotgun and racked a round, hoping the sound alone would end it.

"Stop! I have a gun! Leave us alone!" Truman shouted.

Kelley didn't stop.

He forced his way past the two women and into the kitchen, throwing them both against a wall as he came. Less than six feet away and closing...

Truman fired once, at close range.

"Matt immediately stopped, went limp, and collapsed," Truman said.

Truman performed chest compressions while his mother applied pressure to the wound, then took over CPR when Truman stopped to call 911. Police arrived roughly fifteen minutes later and took Truman into custody, treating the scene as a homicide.

At the station, Truman asked for his phone and wallet, which held his USCCA Membership card, and called the Critical Response Team he had access to through that membership. USCCA Network Attorney Russell Cate, of RileyCate, LLC, arrived within the hour, confirmed Truman wasn't under arrest, and had him released shortly after 1 a.m.

Nearly a year of uncertainty followed…

Cate stayed in contact with the prosecutor's office while building the case: a detailed written statement, a retained use-of-force expert, and a private investigator who began interviewing witnesses within days.

In November 2024, prosecutors declined to file charges. "It appears, by all accounts, that Mr. Smith was acting in defense of his mother," they wrote.

"He saved me that night and will forever be my hero," Truman's mother said.

Truman's experience could have ended very differently if it weren't for his decision to join the USCCA.

Key elements of maintaining Truman's freedom, like the private investigator and use-of-force expert, were a direct benefit of his membership. Both were working on Truman's case for nearly a year before prosecutors ever made a decision. He and his family called that support critical to the outcome. It's hard to argue otherwise.

Surviving an attack is only half the battle.

The legal fight that follows can be just as devastating to your freedom, family, and finances.

Attorney retainer:

$25k–$100k+

Expert witnesses:

$5k–$15k

(each)

Trial & bail costs:

$100k–$500k+

JOIN 860,400+ MEMBERS

When you take advantage of the education, training, and self-defense liability insurance¹ you get with your USCCA^® Membership, you'll be ready for the before, during, AND after of a deadly encounter.

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