ipl-logo

Roper V. Simmons Case Of 2005

827 Words4 Pages

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 …show more content…

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

Show More
Related
1783 Words | 8 Pages

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

Read More
528 Words | 3 Pages

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.

Read More
1262 Words | 6 Pages

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.

Read More
300 Words | 2 Pages

The police brought the investigation back up on December 17th, 2010. Investigators believed that her body was thrown down into a well behind the store that is now known as County Village. The capped well is now under a barbeque pit inside of the store. A dog with the K-9 unit alerted the police after sniffing fumes that could have possibly been a body inside the well.

Read More
1385 Words | 6 Pages

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.

Read More
1079 Words | 5 Pages

I ended up finding an article from the Lincoln Journal Star. The article is from March 23, 2010 and it says that David Kofoed was convicted of tampering with evidence after prosecutors accused him of planting blood evidence that resulted in two men being wrongly charged of a double murder. (Lincoln Journal Star). Kofoed would face up to 5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine (Lincoln Journal Star). Another article, also from the Lincoln Journal Star, provides information from the trial that happened in May of 2010.

Read More
593 Words | 3 Pages

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

Read More
1033 Words | 5 Pages

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.

Read More
1005 Words | 5 Pages

She discovered that it was the body of young Denise Milner. She had a towel and a rope wrapped around her neck. The Councilor soon found Lori and Michele; both of the girls inside of their sleeping bags dead with their mouths sealed with black electrical

Read More
893 Words | 4 Pages

“I don’t care what happens next. If that’s the kind of conduct people want to approve of in this community. I don’t care.” How can a man with so much going against him get off the hook again? The jury stated that the recordings corroborated Davis’ claims.

Read More
693 Words | 3 Pages

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

Read More
863 Words | 4 Pages

“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.

Read More
959 Words | 4 Pages

“Courtney and Josh lay on the floor in a pool of crimson blood” (Preston 38). The police came that morning and set up the crime scene for it to be investigated further. Mackenzie was trying to think what had happened right before she went to bed and she had no memory of the incident. Later the next week, the police still did not have evidence or clues to lead to the killer, mostly due to how well the crime was covered up. “There had to be clues in that Cabin.

Read More
1528 Words | 7 Pages

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.

Read More
1623 Words | 7 Pages

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.

Read More

More about Roper V. Simmons Case Of 2005

Related Topics

Open Document