Anthony Guglielmi, the police department's chief spokesman, said that while the incident was captured by city surveillance cameras, officers monitoring the live camera feeds did not see the incident as it unfolded. The city has more than 600 cameras, many of which can be viewed through feeds at a downtown nerve center.
Commissioner Anthony W. Batts referred to the stabbing as a "sad stain on an otherwise excellent performance" by city officials and police in orchestrating the parade and keeping it safe.
Initial statements from police that the incident was not related to the parade have drawn criticism from Smith's family that the city was trying to downplay the violence. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has said that is not the case and called the killing a "tragedy."