Family shares frustrations in case of Independence woman’s killing

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Nearly a year after Ebony Duncan disappeared from her job in Independence, murder charges have been filed against her ex-boyfriend.

Charles Smith-Howell, 42, is charged with second-degree murder, tampering with evidence, abandonment of a corpse, armed criminal action, and unlawful use of a weapon.

He recently pled guilty to federal firearms charges in this same case but has yet to be sentenced. He’s been in the custody of the U.S. Marshals ever since.

Court documents say on or about September 6, 2023, Smith-Howell knowingly caused Duncan’s death by shooting her and that he destroyed or concealed her cell phone and car with the purpose to obstruct justice.

Duncan, a 44-year-old mother of three, disappeared on September 6, 2023, after she left her job at a rehabilitation facility in Independence. Her body was found more than a month later on Halloween in a wooded area of Kansas City, Missouri.

The update in the case brings some hope to her loved ones, who say she didn’t deserve what happened to her. However, her daughters, including 20-year-old Ebony Williams, think Smith-Howell should have been charged with first-degree murder instead of second.

“I feel like second-degree murder is not enough for me, personally, because you have witnesses saying that while she’s at work he’s going to kill her. Not only did he say it; he did it,” she said.

Williams spoke with FOX4 for the first time Friday about her mother. She further explained her frustration with that particular charge because “if it was not a colored woman [who was killed], he would get first-degree.”

She also shared some frustrations about how the Independence Police Department handled the investigation, particularly their communication.

Williams said media outlets were notified that her mother’s body had been found before the detective assigned to the case told them.

“We asked them where they found the body, but they refused to answer that question for us. When the article came out [about where she was found] it was like you guys were already told where the body was. I felt like that wasn’t fair to us because we should have known that before the public,” added Williams.

Standard practice for all law enforcement agencies is to notify family or next of kin about a crime victim before sharing that information with the media.

When it comes to Smith-Howell, Williams said she knew it was him from the beginning. She explained how he would sometimes sit outside her place of employment waiting on Duncan to pick her up from work and that he would sit outside her mother’s home without her knowledge.

Before Duncan disappeared, Williams said “she was kind of like breaking off from [Smith-Howell], trying to get away. I want to say the day before she [disappeared], she told Charles to come get her belongings from his house.”

Duncan would have celebrated her 45th birthday on August 2. Williams is trying to be strong, but it’s been difficult to lose her mom at such a young age, especially in such a violent way.

“It might be different if she died from getting old or an illness, but somebody actually went and killed her,” she said.

A trial date has yet to be set for Ebony Duncan’s murder. At last check Smith-Howell was being transferred from custody in Caldwell County to Jackson County.

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