The man convicted of murder of a Wayne County woman has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. Richard Smith appeared in Wayne Circuit Court on Tuesday, May 8 for formal sentencing by Judge Vernon Miniard, Jr.

Smith, 53, was convicted of wanton murder in March by a Russell County jury in connection with the September 2009 death of Samantha Rigney.

Rigney was shot to death as she sat with her family on the porch of her home in the Parnell Community.

The trial was moved to Russell County after efforts to seat a jury failed in Wayne County. The Russell County jury heard several days of testimony in the case before returning with the guilty verdict in the early morning hours of Friday, March 30.

Officials alleged that Smith rode up on horseback to the Rigney home, pulled a pistol from his waistband and began to fire shots. Samantha Rigney suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the head, according to police.

The jury also found Smith guilty of three counts of first degree wanton endangerment and two counts of second degree wanton endangerment. They recommended a sentence of 20 years on the murder charge, two years on each county of first degree wanton endangerment and 12 months on each count of second degree wanton endangerment to run concurrent.

Smith will be required to serve 85 percent of the 20 year sentence before he will be considered for the possibility of parole.

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A new weather alert feature is now available for local residents who sign up for the service. The weather alert system, which means a phone call, text message or email to anyone who signs up, is part of the county’s new emergency notification system and it is provided to residents free of charge.

The weather alert is automatically issued to residents who sign up for the service, when a tornado warning or winter storm warning is issued, according to Wayne County Judge/Executive Greg Rankin. Those are the only two instances in which the alert will be issued, according to Rankin.

He noted that the calls, text messages and emails will only be sent to the area of the county that is in the path of the storm.

For instance, if a tornado warning is issued in the northern portion of the county, then that would be the only area where the alert is launched.

The county recently approved a contract with DeltAlert for an emergency notification system.

The general warning program can be used to launch calls to all county residents in a number of emergency situations, for example, the issuance of an Amber Alert or if a boil water advisory is issued.

The weather alert is a component of that, but all residents who want to participate must sign up and opt in for that portion of the service. Rankin said signing up is simple.

Visit the county’s website at www.waynecounty.ky.gov. On the right side of the page is an orange icon. Click on that icon and create an account to sign up for the service.

Several numbers can be included on the account, so all members of the family can receive the weather alerts.

Rankin is urging any friends or family members of elderly or those who have limited internet access to help individuals sign up for the weather alert service.

He noted that anyone who has questions about the service can contact his office at (606) 348-4241.