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Clark Seeks Death Penalty in Slaying of Elderly Couple

Buffalo, NY – Erie County District Attorney Frank Clark will seek the death penalty against a handyman charged with fatally stabbing an elderly couple in their home.

Clark announced Friday that he would prepare a capital punishment case against Robert Smith, 39, in the deaths of Henry and Eugenia Kaminski last November.

The Kaminskis had hired Smith to paint their porch.

Smith was charged with first-degree murder following his arrest three days after the slayings.

Clark said he took a number of factors into account in deciding to seek the death penalty, including the amount of proof collected in the case and the fact that the victims were stabbed numerous times.

"Probably the most difficult thing I have to do as a prosecutor is to make that judgment," Clark said.