A 17-year-old California boy who was previously arrested in connection with a shooting is now accused of opening fire inside a Spirit Halloween store, killing a pregnant mother of four and wounding six others. Prosecutors are seeking permission to try him as an adult.
Fairfield police said Monte Smith was arrested Nov. 2, days after the shooting at Solano Town Center killed Constance Hages, 31, and injured six people.
The Solano County District Attorney’s Office charged Smith with two counts of murder and asked a judge to transfer the case to adult court.
A person was killed in a shooting Friday night at a Spirit Halloween store in California. (KOVR)
Fairfield police said Smith had been arrested in an earlier shooting before the deadly attack at the Halloween store. That case involved gunfire in a high school parking lot after school hours in 2025. He was sentenced and later released, according to the department.
“It’s time for change in California,” Fairfield Police Chief Dan Marshall said, according to KTVU. “I don’t know how many more people have to die at the hands of youth. Hopefully we’ve had plenty enough.”
Constance Hages, who was 31, leaves behind four children, according to a GoFundMe campaign organized by her aunt. She was killed in the Fairfield Spirit Halloween shooting. (GoFundMe)
Prosecutors cited Smith’s criminal history as part of their argument that he should remain in custody.
“Due to the seriousness of these crimes, the minor’s criminal record, and the threat to public safety, the people will argue that Smith remain detained,” the DA’s office said.
The charging documents also allege that Smith has a prior violent-offense conviction classified as a strike. The DA’s announcement did not identify the offense.
Hages’ death left four children without their mother, according to a GoFundMe campaign organized by her aunt, Clanisha Morton. Police confirmed that Hages was pregnant when she was killed.
“Constance was deeply loved, and her absence has created an overwhelming void in the lives of everyone who knew and cherished her,” Morton wrote.
The fundraiser is intended to help cover funeral costs and provide care for Hages’ children.
“Constance was deeply loved,” her aunt, Clanisha Morton, wrote in a fundraiser for the family following the deadly Spirit Halloween shooting. (GoFundMe)
Police said the shooting began around 8:30 p.m. Oct. 30, when Smith allegedly entered the store and saw another customer investigators believe he intended to attack.
He allegedly pulled out a gun and fired several rounds, striking that person and six others, according to police. Hages died at the scene.
Investigators have not named the suspected target or disclosed what may have prompted the shooting.
Smith reportedly left within minutes, as officers were arriving. While first responders treated the wounded, a school resource officer helped identify the suspect.
According to police, the officer recognized Smith as a former student while reviewing surveillance footage from the store and immediately notified detectives. That information helped investigators identify him within hours of the initial 911 call. Detectives later found him at a residence in neighboring Suisun City.
Because Smith is 17, police initially did not release his name. The DA’s office later identified him in its announcement of the charges.
Six surviving victims were taken to hospitals, with at least three reported to be in critical condition, officials said. (KOVR)
The FBI also contributed to the investigation. The agency confirmed to News Outlet that its Evidence Response Team helped Fairfield police process part of the crime scene.
Smith faces two murder counts, three counts of attempted murder, three counts of assault with a semiautomatic weapon and multiple gun enhancements, the DA’s office said. Prosecutors also filed a special-circumstance allegation involving multiple murders.
The DA’s office said Smith’s arraignment and detention hearing was scheduled for Nov. 4 at 9 a.m. A judge must approve the request to prosecute him as an adult.
Police have not identified the school connected to the earlier shooting or said when Smith was released in that case.
In a Saturday update on the surviving victims, police said a 16-year-old boy, a 19-year-old man and a 32-year-old man remained in critical condition. A 23-year-old man was listed in critical but stable condition. Two additional men, ages 19 and 43, were treated for gunshot wounds and released.
The department did not provide new details about the victims’ conditions in its arrest announcement.
“Although an arrest has been made, our work is not over,” Fairfield police said. “The criminal justice process will now move forward, and we remain committed to ensuring accountability for the lives impacted by this senseless act of violence.”
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Fairfield police at 707-428-7600 or email 1030mall@fairfield.ca.gov.
