DA drops domestic violence charges against Sonic Automotive CEO David Bruton Smith
The Mecklenburg District Attorney’s Office dismissed all domestic violence-related charges filed against Sonic Automotive CEO David Bruton Smith on Friday.
Smith, 46, was arrested in October 2020 and charged with assault on a female, assault by strangulation, false imprisonment and interference with emergency communication.
Assistant District Attorney Kristen Northrup wrote in the dismissal that the victim had been consulted and that there was insufficient evidence to prove each offense beyond a reasonable doubt in a trial.
“The outcome confirms Mr. Smith’s belief in the justice system, and he is obviously pleased that the charges have been dismissed,” Smith’s attorney George Laughrun said in a statement on Monday.
According to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police report, officers responded to a domestic violence call around 2:30 a.m. on Oct. 5 at Smith’s south Charlotte home on Carmel Park Drive. The victim, a 22-year-old woman not related to Smith, had said she was assaulted and held against her will, according to the report. The arrest warrant also states that the victim had redness around her neck and scratch marks.
The Charlotte Observer generally does not name victims of alleged domestic violence.
According to a company spokesman, Smith told Sonic Automotive’s board of directors in October that he is “innocent and expects to be exonerated.” The spokesman also said the company “remains steadfast in its support of our CEO.”
Sonic Automotive is a Fortune 500 company and bills itself as one of the biggest auto retailers in the United States.
David Smith took over as CEO of Sonic in 2018 after his brother Scott stepped down. Their father, Bruton Smith, founded the company and Speedway Motorsports LLC, which owns several NASCAR racetracks, including Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord.
Sonic Automotive told the Observer last year it was expanding a retail hub on Independence Boulevard known as EchoPark, which offers used cars.
