At the age of 17, Christopher Simmons planned and pursued his plan of kidnapping, tying up, and throwing his neighbor, Shirley Crook off of a bridge. Missouri attorneys claim that Simmons boasted about his plan of killing his neighbor. Thinking that he could get away with it because he was only 17 years old, which is not fair. But other attorneys claim that Simmons should not get the death penalty because it violates the 8th amendment. Considering Simmons still committed murder and put the innocent women to a cruel death, he should have been given the death penalty.
In 1993, Christopher Simmons wanted to kill his neighbor, Shirley Crook. Why in the world would a young, 17 year old boy want to do something so evil? That was the question many
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Shirley Crook was an innocent woman who was living a normal life happily married, with children when her life was instantly taken away from her in a painful way. All because of a teenager who was trying to see if he could murder someone without getting caught or punished for it. The death penalty should be given to anyone at any age who committed murder with the intention or plan to do it. There are different circumstances in each case and with these there should be no mercy given to this boy. The male brain isn’t fully developed until the age of 25 years, but by the age of 17, it should be able to think wisely and function on its own. Christopher Simmons killed this innocent woman and more punishment should have been given than what was. Simmons will sit in prison thinking that he got away with it. This does not set a good example for the younger generation, that if you want to murder someone then you can and you don't receive the death penalty, but jail for life. The death penalty was legal for minors in the State of Missouri, the death penalty was a fair punishment for Christopher Simmons and would have been the wisest punishment to give. No mercy should have been given to Simmons on this action. This case that is unfair will forever be a milestone in Supreme Court