Man accused of murdering pregnant girlfriend in Philadelphia appears in court after 4 years on the run
For the family of Dianna Brice, justice has been a long time coming.
Justin Smith, 27, appeared in a Philadelphia courtroom for the first time on Wednesday in connection with the 2021 murder of Brice and her unborn child after he was on the run for four years.
Smith was arrested in March in Atlanta and extradited to Pennsylvania.
"It's been four years," Brice's mother, Betty Cellini, said. "Justice will be served."
Cellini and other members of the family filled the courtroom with raw emotion as they faced the man accused of ending the life of Brice and her unborn baby.
"She was my rock. She took everything she knew about me to her grave," Cellini said. "I can never replace her. I tried. Just can't."
Smith waived his right to a preliminary hearing, a legal move that prevents early witness testimony and shields the defense from previewing the prosecution's evidence.
"There were multiple people who wanted to testify against him," Cellini said. "And then his attorney, who's a court-appointed lawyer, said it would be in his best interest to waive the preliminary."
Family members said they are unfazed by the legal strategy.
"He's guilty as charged," Sean Miller, Brice's uncle, said. "Two lives are taken from my family. They can't come back to us in no way, shape, except for memories."
Smith's arrest earlier this year brought a sense of long-awaited relief to Brice's loved ones.
"It was a huge weight off the family's shoulders," Miller said.
Brice was reported missing on March 30, 2021, after she was last seen getting into Smith's Ford Fusion in Upper Darby. That same day, the car was found burned in Southwest Philadelphia. Weeks later, her body was discovered in a wooded area off Eastwick Avenue; she had been shot multiple times.
"She left behind her 8-year-old son, so we live for him," Cellini said.
"It gives us that reassurance that Dianna is still with us," Miller said.
Her father, Gary Brice Sr., added solemnly, "Can't nobody hurt my baby no more."
Despite their grief, the family said they are leaning on their faith.
"We just want to keep faith and we will get the results that we're looking for," Miller said.
Smith is scheduled to return to court on June 4.
