Smith was born in
Holly Springs,
Mississippi, the son of Dora Ellen Anderson, an English teacher, and David Shepard Smith, Sr., a cotton merchant. He attended Marshall Academy, a
K-12 private school in Holly Springs, but completed his senior year of high school in Florida, where he, his mother, and brother moved after his parents separated.<sup id="cite_ref-ppl030428_0-0" class="reference">
<span>[</span>1<span>]</span><sup id="cite_ref-ajr1001_1-0" class="reference">
<span>[</span>2<span>]</span><sup id="cite_ref-_2-0" class="reference">
<span>[</span>3<span>]</span> Smith went on to attend the
University of Mississippi. He
majored in
journalism, but left two credits away from graduation. He frequently returns to the university during
college football season and delivered the university's annual
commencement address on May 10, 2008.<sup id="cite_ref-olemiss580_3-0" class="reference">
<span>[</span>4<span>]</span><sup id="cite_ref-ppl030428_0-1" class="reference">
<span>[</span>1<span>]</span></p>
According to a 2003 profile published in
People magazine, Smith was married to Virginia Donald, a University of Mississippi classmate.<sup id="cite_ref-ppl030428_0-2" class="reference">
<span>[</span>1<span>]</span> They married in 1987 and divorced in 1993 with no children.<sup id="cite_ref-ajr1001_1-1" class="reference">
<span>[</span>2<span>]</span></p>
Smith has declined to answer questions about his
sexual orientation, having told
Playboy, "I don't talk about those things. I won't tell you what church I go to or whether I go."
<span>[</span>
The
St. Petersburg Times reported that he had been arrested on November 17 for
aggravated battery with a motor vehicle.
<span>[</span>12<span>]</span> The alleged victim was Maureen Walsh, another reporter who was also in Florida covering the election controversy. According to the
Tallahassee Democrat, on July 20, 2001, the charge "was reduced to
misdemeanor battery" and dismissed after "both sides agreed to a confidential payoff" during June 2001.
<span>[</span>The
St. Petersburg Times reported that he had been arrested on November 17 for
aggravated battery with a motor vehicle.<sup id="cite_ref-StPete1_11-0" class="reference">
<span>[</span>12<span>]</span> The alleged victim was Maureen Walsh, another reporter who was also in Florida covering the election controversy. According to the
Tallahassee Democrat, on July 20, 2001, the charge "was reduced to
misdemeanor battery" and dismissed after "both sides agreed to a confidential payoff" during June 2001.<sup id="cite_ref-TalDem1_12-0" class="reference">
<span>[</span></p>