Introduction
In response to question one of unit 4, I will discuss the facts, issues, as well as court holdings referencing the Roper v. Simmons case of 2005.
Discussion
The Roper v. Simmons case is noted for being one of the most significant cases in the history of the juvenile court system as it abolished capital punishment for offenders under the age of eighteen in the United States (Death Penalty Information Center, n.d.). This case was argued on October 13, 2004, and a decision was reached by the United States Supreme Court on March 1, 2005. The case referenced the sentencing of Christopher Simmons to death for a crime he committed at the age of seventeen (Cornell University Law School, n.d.). In 1993, Christopher Simmons conspired
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The remaining two, Christopher Simmons and Charles Benjamin, followed through by reaching through an open window to unlock the door of the home of Shirley Crook. It was later uncovered, Shirley Crook and Christopher Simmons had been involved in a motor vehicle accident some time before that night. Christopher Simmons’ testimony indicated once recognized Shirley Crook it reaffirmed his desire to murder her. The two friends bond Shirley Crook’s hands with duct tape then covered her mouth and eyes prior to placing her into the back of her van and driving to a state park. The two guided Shirley Crook to a railroad spanning the Meramec River where they further bond her with electrical tape, a towel, and additional duct tape before pushing her off the bridge to the waters below. The body of Shirley Crook was found later in the day having drowned in the …show more content…
All three were initially charged in connection with the incident, consequently, the conspiracy charge against John Tessmer was dropped in exchange for his testimony. The charges of burglary, theft, kidnapping, as well as murder were taken against both Christopher Simmons and Charles Benjamin. The Miranda Rights were explained to Christopher Simmons prior to the interview with the law enforcement investigators, he waived his right to counsel then confessed to the crime. At trial the prosecution presented the confession along with a video of Christopher Simmons reenacting the crime. The jury returned with a guilty verdict for the charge of murder in the first degree. The sentencing trial followed soon after where Christopher Simmons was sentenced to the death penalty for the heinous act he had carried
Then bragged to his friends about it because she seen his face. When Simmons was taken into custody, he admitted everything on a videotape. Outcome: Simmons was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. However, he appealed his conviction twice and the Missouri Supreme Court sentenced him to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole or release except by governor act, while setting aside the death sentence.
Jordan Bratton made a Twitter post on April 13th that he was going to “kill tonight and shut up the critics once and for all.” The prosecution can use this evidence to show that Jordan Bratton had a motive for killing Preston Balmen and given the quantity and types of evidence, they can try to persuade jurors that the findings of the investigation were not coincidental. They must convince jurors beyond a reasonable doubt that Jordan Bratton was responsible
This paper will study the case study of Roper Vs. Simmons in the juvenile death penalty and critical analysis of the Supreme court ruling. The article will also address various changes that have occurred as a result of this case with future suggestions of similar circumstances for the implementation of policies and court practices. Case Background Chris Simmons was only seventeen years old when he committed murder. Simmons planned with his friends how he would murder the victim by breaking into her house, robbing and typing the person up and finally throwing her down the bridge.
The jury however was to upset by the cruel act committed by such young men, with such little motive that they sentenced him to death. Upset by the verdict, Simmons appealed and hired a new lawyer. His new lawyer asked the court to review his case, but sadly both the local and Missouri Supreme Court stood with their conviction.
oshua Haas October 6, 2014 Intro to Criminal Justice Miller Vs. Alabama On June 25, 2012 the Supreme Court had rule 5 to 4 that Miller was guilty to committing murder and was sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. On that day in June the court had struck down all of the statues that was requires for a child under the age of 18 to be sentenced life in prison.
In reviewing the Supreme Court case of Roper v. Simmons 543 U.S. 551 (2005), we review the allegation of the violation of the Eighth Amendment in the trial court’s use of cruel and unusual punishment in its sentencing of Christopher Simmons; who was a juvenile at the time of the crime; to a sentence of death. In reviewing the facts of the case, we find that Christopher Simmons, then 17 and a junior in high school, along with Charles Benjamin and John Tessmer, planned the commission of a burglary with the intent to commit murder under the perception that they were minors and as such would be able to get away with the crimes. Upon his capture, Simmons, admitted to the crimes and provided law enforcement with the details of the crimes. Because of his age and the nature of the crime, Simmons was considered to be
The court’s opinion on this case, overturning the death penalty, I personally agree with. This case addresses the Eighth Amendment, cruel and unusual punishment and sentencing a juvenile to the death penalty violates Simmons’s Eighth Amendment Right. Simmons being 17 years of age, impulsive, immaturity, behavior changes, alcohol and drug abuse, and bad home environment is crucial to his behavior. These facts all play a role in this case; however, were not addressed during the sentencing process. During closing arguments the defense harped on Simmons’s age; to remind the jurors that legislatures made laws that prohibited juveniles from drinking, serving on juries, even buying or renting R rated movies believing that individuals under a certain age simply are not responsible enough.
He also tried to reach for a deputy’s gun, in which he again was sentenced to death by lethal injection. Simmons kept waiving his rights to appeal, to try to get away with being “insane”. This shows that he was for sure competent enough to think about those things, so what exactly was wrong with this man? Then finally in 1990, with Simmons accepting his fate, Bill Clinton signed his death warrant for June 25, 1990. This was the fastest sentence to death ever since the death penalty was put into
Nesbitt. Nesbitt pulled a gun and King took it from him and shot Nesbitt with his own gun. James was sentenced 25 to life. Presented in the documentary, after they released Butler from custody they didn't catch the guy who actually killed Mrs. Stephens till a year later. To get a reduced sentence one of the fellow inmates in his cell ratted on the killer in the same cell because he told them whole story of how he shot her because she called him a name as she was being robbed.
The story regarding then seventeen year old Christopher Simmons is awful and I do not understand why people would abuse and torture people in the manner in which he did. According to the article, he had it in his mind that he just wanted to kill someone and it happened to be someone that he had prior contact with. No matter what state of mind he and the other juveniles were in, there was no excuse to treat Mrs. Crook the way that they did and murder her by throwing her off a bridge.
The FBI began to scrutinize suspects who could have possibly committed the crime. Robert Chambliss was convicted in 1977 for murder because of how he had taken part in the church bombing. Thomas Edwin Blanton was also convicted for his role in this crime, in 2001, because of murder. Bobby Frank Cherry was convicted in 2002 for his role in the church bombing which was murder. Herman Frank Cash was not convicted, but authorities believed he played the part of the fourth conspirator in this
Simmons is just another case during a time every other case involved factors like age and mental state to show how the death penalty was legally wrong. The age of criminals was a major factor to many people in the court system within the years and cases prior to Simmons. During this time the age of someone sentenced to death, like someone who was a juvenile, wasn't violating the constitution. Cases later would help change this, which helps Simmons in not receiving the death penalty. Now in the cases prior to Simmons, most involving mental retardation, were for those people who has low IQ and were considered to be mentally retarded.
“The court consistently held that children are entitled to the same due process as adults. With that understood, however, the Court has also consistently held that, from a developmental standpoint, youth are different from adults, which greatly impacts how courts should treat them in a whole host of areas, such as waiver of rights, culpability, and punishment” (National Juvenile Defender Center). This shows that the juvenile delinquent cases before In Re Gault were not highly regulated. The Court believed that handling juveniles needed to be very different from the way the courts handle adult cases. In Re Gault changed that.
Crimes are happening around us whether we pay attention to them or not. Those crimes as dangerous as murder are committed by all ages but should younger criminal in their juvenile age received the same punishment as older criminals. On June 25, 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that juveniles committed murder could not be sentenced to life in prison because it violates the Eighth Amendment.(On-Demand Writing Assignment Juvenile Justice) Advocates on the concurring side believes that mandatory life in prison is wrong and should be abolish. However, the dissenting side believe that keeping the there should be a life in prison punishment for juvenile who commit heinous crime regardless of their age.
The Villisca Axe Murders has been one of America’s most terrifying unsolved mass murders in American history that changed the town of Villisca forever. This murder took place in a small town called Villisca in the county of Montgomery, Iowa. The family murdered was the Moores. Josiah and Sarah had 4 kids. Boyd was the youngest of the three, just a couple years younger than Katherine and Herman, who was the oldest kid of the Moore family.