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A Jackson County man was sentenced to 18 years in prison for his role in the death of a Seymour man in 1982.
Jackson Circuit Court Judge Richard Poynter on Monday sentenced 63-year-old Ronald Anderson to 18 years in prison for the death of 24-year-old Clifford Smith, whose body was found by trappers along the White River in December 1982.
According to the investigation, Anderson was at a residence with Smith and several others in the late hours of Oct. 30, 1982. Eventually, Anderson and Smith left the residence, Anderson with a loaded shotgun in tow, and Smith was not seen alive again, according to court documents.
Investigators believe Anderson was responsible for Smith’s murder and returned to the crime scene a short time after to hide potential evidence.
While the homicide was investigated around the time of Smith’s death, no arrests were made at the time. The case was passed along to different investigators over the years, and in September 2015, a new team began looking into the case.
On Oct. 31, 2023, 41 years after Smith’s death, Anderson was arrested for murder.
He pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in April 2025, dismissing his murder charge as part of a plea agreement.
“I want to commend the Indiana State Police Investigators for their dedication to this case over the last forty plus years in an effort to bring justice and some sort of closure to Clifford Smith’s family,” said Mark Hollingsworth, a deputy prosecutor for the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office. “We are pleased that in this case, justice delayed was not justice denied.”
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