He received his bachelor's degree from William Carey University and then served at various positions in the police forces in both Pearl River and then Harrison counties.

In 1988, Smith ran for the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican from Mississippi's 5th congressional district in the southern portion of the state after eight-term incumbent Trent Lott gave up the seat to make a successful run for the Senate.

However, Smith died on the night of August 13 in a plane crash in rural Perry County near Gulfport after returning from opening the Little League baseball "Dixie Youth World Series" in Hattiesburg.

Smith's death came only six days after fellow Representative Mickey Leland of Texas died in a plane crash in Ethiopia on August 7, 1989.

Taylor would succeed Smith in a special election held some two months after the crash, beating Republican candidate Tom Anderson.