Essay On Roper Vs Simmons

In the early 1990’s the U.S. Supreme Court case Roper v. Simmons took place and at the same time cases that were similar were also being heard. This case involved the defendant Christopher Simmons, who commited the crime, and Donald P. Roper, the plaintiff, who was the superintendent of Potosi Correctional Center and was representing the state of Missouri. The case would never have happened if it wasn't for the actions of 17-year old Christopher Simmons of Missouri in 1993. Simmons and a couple of his friends concocted a plan to murder Shirley Crook for reasons unknown. Only Simmons and one of his two friends commited it burglarizing Crook’s residence, binding her up and then driving to a state park and throwing her full of life body off a

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. In Simmons case his age was what caused him to have a metal barrier than most adults, due to factors that his brain was not fully developed at his age and during the time of the

In this case the only factor seen as a mitigating circumstance was his age which was the same for the case of Thomason v. Oklahoma. This is where Justice John Paul Stevens states that aspects like “inexperience, less education, less intelligence, emotions, peer pressure, and irresponsibility” were all factors as to why someone who was a juveniles during their crime doesn't deserve the death penalty. The cases dealing with mental retardation of a criminal as well suggest why someone like Simmons shouldn't get the death penalty. In the case of Penry v. Lynaugh a statement is made that says “because of their mental disabilities, mentally retarded people do not possess the level of moral culpability to justify imposing the sentence.” This case as well brings up the national consensus that is against the death penalty which was a factor in the fate of Simmons. Finally in the case of Atkins v. Virginia, which Simmons himself use as a reference for his sentence, this is where we see that the execution of someone considered mentally retarded is cruel and unusual punishment under the eighth