By TMZ | Created at 2026-10-15 16:05:25 | Updated at 2026-10-15 17:43:47
3 hours ago
'People's Court' Mom Ex Charged With Her Murder ... After They Sparred On Show
Published October 15, 2026 6:47 AM PDT | Updated October 15, 2026 8:25 AM PDT
Huge break in a 2011 murder case involving "The People's Court" ... police in Florida arrested Dale Smith for allegedly killing his ex-fiancée after they appeared on the famous TV show.
The Orlando PD announced Wednesday that Smith was taken into custody at his workplace and charged with murder ... nearly 15 years after Michelle Parker vanished without a trace. Smith was booked in the Orange County jail without bond.
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Cops say Smith was a prime suspect in the case from the start, and all evidence pointed to him as the alleged killer.
Police say Parker disappeared on November 17, 2011, after she dropped off the twins she shared with Smith, who was the last person to see her alive. Her body has never been recovered.
On the day of her disappearance, Parker and Smith appeared as litigants on a prerecorded episode of "The People's Court" ... they were locked in a legal war over a $5,000 engagement ring.
In court, Parker mentioned that Smith "gets pretty malicious and vindictive." She also said Smith "wanted his ring, so I took it off, and I threw it at him."
The day after Parker vanished, police combed the surrounding area ... finding Parker's car on Orlando's west side and her mobile phone in a lake south of Orlando.
Over the years, Smith denied any involvement in Parker's disappearance. But recently, police said investigators pieced together their case against Smith using advances in digital forensics to "uncover and analyze additional evidence that moved this case forward."
