Mixed race accountant accused of killing California doctor, 58, wrote rambling posts about ethnicity

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A man accused of mowing down and stabbing to death a California doctor who was cycling along the Pacific Coast Highway described himself as ‘mixed race’ in a series of lengthy posts on social media, in which he railed against ‘grudges, malice, separation, hate’.

Dr Michael Mammone, a 58-year-old emergency room doctor at Providence Mission Hospital in Laguna Beach, was killed on Wednesday.

Vanroy Evan Smith, 39, an accountant from Long Beach, appeared in court on Friday charged with murder.

Prosecutors allege Smith drove through a red light around 3pm and hit Mammone. He then got out of his white Lexus and walked over to the doctor, drew a knife and stabbed him to death.

Mixed race accountant accused of killing California doctor, 58, wrote rambling posts about ethnicity

Dr Michael Mammone, 58, was knocked off his bike and killed on Wednesday

Vanroy Smith, left, has been charged with murder after Dr Michael Mammone, right, was knocked off his bike on Wednesday and killed

Aerial footage shows where the white Lexus careered into the cyclist and remained parked up a few hundred yards away

Aerial footage shows where the white Lexus careered into the cyclist and remained parked up a few hundred yards awayĀ 

He was holding a BB gun when he approached Mammone, a married father-of-two, and was screaming racial slurs about ‘white privilege’ , according to ABC7.Ā 

Smith was restrained by passersby until sheriffs arrived and arrested him.

‘An innocent man is dead because he took a bike ride to enjoy a beautiful California day along the beach and he was hit with a car and stabbed to death by someone he apparently never met,’ said Todd Spitzer, district attorney for Orange County.Ā 

‘The murder of a complete stranger in broad daylight for what appears to be absolutely no reason is the stuff of nightmares.’Ā 

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On Facebook, Smith wrote about being mixed race, and posted lengthy musings about ethnicity and religion.

‘I was born of black and white, then had the lucky chance of growing the first 12 years with my black family, and the following 6 with white,’ he wrote.

‘I am mixed, and I find races petty.’

Smith railed against the ‘grudges, malice, separation, hate’ he felt were directed at people for their race, noting: ‘It really holds you back.’Ā 

Smith appeared in court shackled to several deputies and only spoke to confirm his name and date of birth

Smith appeared in court shackled to several deputies and only spoke to confirm his name and date of birthĀ 

He continued, in a screed ripe with spelling mistakes: ‘Why can’t we see that all this is tempory? We all wither and die.Ā 

‘Are you born with an appearance people call ugly or deformed? It’s ok, you will build character then go somewhere else, where I believe there will be no such limitations, if you go to the right place.Ā 

‘Likewise, are you considered beautiful or nicely shaped? Be thankful, not prideful. Did you make yourself, and how long will you be like that, does that time even appear on a scale of eternity?’

In another post, in October 2020, Smith wrote: ‘Current thought: Black VS Dark & White VS Light.’

He mused about the significance given to the colors white and black, and said it impacted people’s attitudes.

‘By appearance and established standards, I am called a black man,’ he wrote.Ā 

‘Does that mean I deny and reject half of my ancestry. How do we tell someone to filter things like that from their blood?Ā 

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‘All in all, we really need to change our way of thinking.’

Dr Mammone's destroyed bike can be seen at the corner of the intersection after it was thrown into the air

Dr Mammone’s destroyed bike can be seen at the corner of the intersection after it was thrown into the air

Shocking video shows the moment Smith, a trained accountant, careered into the cyclist, with police claiming that the pair were complete strangers

Shocking video shows the moment Smith, a trained accountant, careered into the cyclist, with police claiming that the pair were complete strangers

Despite witnesses claiming they saw a gun of some kind, officials have not confirmed if any firearms were recovered from the scene

Despite witnesses claiming they saw a gun of some kind, officials have not confirmed if any firearms were recovered from the scene

Mammone lived in Dana Point (pictured) in California with his wife and two sons

Mammone lived in Dana Point (pictured) in California with his wife and two sons

Mammone (in pink shirt) leaves behind his wife Julie, a nurse in the same hospital (pictured in leopard-print dress), and two sons, Nick and Jon

Mammone (in pink shirt) leaves behind his wife Julie, a nurse in the same hospital (pictured in leopard-print dress), and two sons, Nick and Jon

Smith, a father-of-two, remains in custodyĀ at the Intake Release Centre in Orange County.Ā 

Mammone has worked as an ER physician at Providence Mission Hospital in Laguna Beach, since 2011 and graduated from the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California in 1993.

He also occasionally worked out of Mission Viejo and the Children’s Hospital of Orange County in Santa Ana.

The hospital said in a statement: ‘We are stunned by this devastating tragedy. The entire Mission Hospital family is grieving over the loss of an incredible physician and friend.

‘We will honor Dr. Mammone’s dedication to our community and passion for medicine by continuing to provide exceptional care.’

He leaves behind his wife Julie, a nurse in the same hospital, and two sons, Nick and Jon.Ā 

Cardiologist Dawn Aatwal said: ‘That’s the irony of this whole thing. If a patient was brought in his condition, he would have done everything he could to save that person.

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She added: ‘He has saved so many lives here, and he died very close to where he saved hundreds of lives.’

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