Kevin Smith has over 29 years of experience as a federal and state prosecutor, including as a former United States Department of Justice federal counterterrorism prosecutor and as a former homicide prosecutor having tried to verdict cases in superior court resulting in multiple first degree murder convictions.
Smith is the recipient of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) 2024 Helene and Joseph Sherwood Prize for Combating Hate.
Smith has created and developed the curricula of fundamental and advanced behavioral threat assessment training courses for active shooter and mass casualty attack prevention which have been certified by the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST).
Smith has also created and developed the curriculum of an advanced behavioral threat assessment training course for K-12 school safety which has been certified by California POST.
Smith is a highly accomplished presenter and instructor and he has delivered foundational and advanced behavioral threat assessment training to thousands of security stakeholders, including law enforcement personnel from the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service, the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service, the Major Crimes Division and the Threat Management Unit of the Los Angeles Police Department, and the Crisis Intervention Team of the San Francisco Police Department, military personnel, educators, school and campus administrators, university threat assessment team members, corporate and private security personnel, mental health professionals, and human resources personnel.
As a U.S. Department of Justice federal counterterrorism prosecutor, Smith led and directed law enforcement personnel on Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTFs) and other federal law enforcement personnel in conducting national security investigations of U.S. State Department designated foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs), as well as U.S.-based violent extremists. Smith used a myriad of investigative techniques to identify, assess, and successfully manage complex threats to the security of this nation. Smith’s focus on terrorism matters also involved identifying support and financial networks for transnational terrorist groups operating in the United States.
Smith was an Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council (ATAC) Coordinator for the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Central District of California (encompassing Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo counties) and a Deputy Chief of the Organized Crime and Terrorism Section of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
Smith was the lead prosecutor in the investigation and prosecution of a group of U.S.-based violent extremists who sought to wage a war of terrorism against the United States by targeting U.S. armed forces personnel working in military recruitment centers and other innocent civilians. The case ended with group members, including its leader, convicted of seditious conspiracy charges in U.S. District Court and sentenced to federal prison terms.
Smith has personally interrogated U.S.-based violent extremists regarding radicalization, recruitment, financing, target selection, pre-operational activities, and attack planning. This practical, first-hand experience enabled Smith to gain valuable insight into the pre-attack behaviors these subjects exhibited on their pathway to violence.
Smith was invited by the full United States House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security to testify before Congress about prison radicalization and the threat of U.S.-based violent extremists. Smith shared his insights and analysis regarding this national security threat with the congressional panel.
Smith has created and developed the curriculum of domestic violent extremists (DVEs) and sovereign citizen violent extremists (SCVEs) training courses which have been certified by the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST).
Im addition, Smith has created and conducted training programs on other topics such as workplace targeted violence prevention, school and campus targeted violence prevention, radicalized insider threats, extremism in schools, lone actor terrorism, prison radicalization, and homegrown violent extremists (HVEs).
As an Assistant United States Attorney, Smith helped establish a joint federal-local law enforcement task force to investigate and prosecute violent criminal enterprises utilizing the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) and Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering (VICAR) federal criminal statutes. In addition, Smith investigated and prosecuted transnational criminal organizations, corruption matters involving public officials and employees, and complicated and difficult to detect financial crimes, including numerous types of fraud schemes and money laundering.
Smith has litigated forensic psychological issues such as criminal insanity, offender with a mental health disorder status, sexually violent predator status, and mental competence for trial.
Smith previously held an adjunct faculty position at a California State University where he taught graduate-level courses to students in the M.S. in Criminology and Criminal Justice program, including Terrorism and Criminal Justice, Organized Crime, and Legal Issues in Criminal Justice courses. Smith was also an adjunct faculty member at an American Bar Association accredited law school, where he taught Terrorism and the Law.
Smith is licensed as a private investigator by the California Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS).
Smith received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Notre Dame and his Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the University of San Diego School of Law, where he was inducted into the Order of the Coif honor society.
Smith Strategics 