Hostage in Atlanta Admits Drug Use

ATLANTA — Ashley Smith, the woman who says she persuaded suspected courthouse gunman Brian Nichols to release her by talking about her faith, discloses in a new book that she gave him methamphetamine during the hostage ordeal.

Smith did not share that detail with authorities at the time. But investigators said she came clean about the drugs when they interviewed her months later. They said they had no plans to charge her with drug possession.

In her book, “Unlikely Angel,” released Tuesday, Smith says Nichols had her bound on her bed with masking tape and an extension cord. She says he asked for marijuana, but she did not have any, and she provided him with illegal crystal meth instead.

Smith, a 27-year-old widowed mother, gained widespread praise for her level-headedness during the seven-hour ordeal in March.

Police said Nichols took Smith hostage in her apartment March 11 after a shooting rampage at the Atlanta courthouse.

During the ordeal, Smith says, she pulled out Rick Warren’s book “The Purpose-Driven Life” and read to Nichols a chapter titled “Using What God Gave Me.” Nichols later released her, and she called 911.

Nichols is accused of killing four people, including a judge, and could get the death penalty.