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Army Veteran Serving Life Without Parole for Taking $9
by Douglas Ankney
Willie Simmons became addicted to drugs while in the Army and stationed abroad. In 1982, he was in Alabama and “in need of a quick fix.”
Simmons wrestled a man to the ground and took his wallet that contained nine dollars. Police arrested him a few blocks away. Simmons was charged with robbery. His trial lasted 25 minutes, and his court-appointed attorney called no witnesses. No plea deal was offered.
Because Simmons had three prior convictions — all nonviolent felonies — he was sentenced to life without parole under Alabama’s Habitual Offender Law. He was 25 years old.
Today he is studying for his GED at Holman, one of the most violent prisons in the U.S. There had been drugs all around him, but he still tries “to stay away from the wild bunch,” Beth Shelburne tweeted. Simmons got sober in prison 18 years ago.
“I just talked to God about it,” he said. Simmons’ sister died in 2005, and he hasn’t had a visitor since. “In a place like this, it can feel like you’re standing all alone,” he told WBRC-TV News, Birmingham. “Sometimes I feel like I’m lost in outer space.”
Source: blackenterprise.com
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More from this issue:
- A Nation on the Brink, by Christopher Zoukis
- Office of Homeland Security Circumventing Warrant Requirement by Buying Cellphone Location Data from Marketing Firm, by Anthony Accurso
- From the Editor, by Richard Resch
- Using Location Surveillance to Fight COVID-19 May Chill Free Speech and Association, by David Reutter
- This Is Not a Revolution. It’s a Blueprint for Locking Down the Nation, by John W. Whitehead
- Fourth Circuit Expands Savings Clause of § 2255(e) to Include Later Retroactivity of New Rule, by Dale Chappell
- Seventh Circuit: Defendant’s Statement Given to Pretrial Services Can’t Be Admitted to Impeach Witness at Trial, by Douglas Ankney
- California Court of Appeal Explains Procedural Requirements for Vacating Felony-Murder Conviction Via Section 1170.95 Petition, by Douglas Ankney
- Police Violence Detrimental to Public Health, by Douglas Ankney
- Congressmen File Amicus Brief Stressing Congressional Intent That First Step Act’s New Drug Laws Apply at Resentencing, by Dale Chappell
- Indiana Supreme Court: Removal of Police’s GPS Tracker on Suspect’s Vehicle Not Probable Cause of Theft, Suppression of Evidence, by Anthony Accurso
- New Hampshire Supreme Court: Police Violated Miranda in Obtaining First Statement, and State Failed to Prove Second Statement Was Voluntary, by Douglas Ankney
- 5-Year Study Shows Police Stop Black Drivers Less Often at Night When ‘Veil of Darkness’ Obscures Race, by Douglas Ankney
- Declassified Court Ruling Details FBI Abuses of Mass Surveillance Data, by Anthony Accurso
- Second Circuit: Three Important Rulings Under First Step Act, by Dale Chappell
- Marijuana Possession in Virginia Remains Illegal But Is Decriminalized, by Douglas Ankney
- Eleventh Circuit Holds Hobbs Act Robbery Doesn’t Trigger Career Offender Enhancement, by Dale Chappell
- COVID-19 Creates Opportunity for Big Brother in the Sky, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
- Biden Accuser Accused of Inflating Credentials to Qualify as Expert Witness, Calling Convictions into Question, by Derek Gilna
- Perjurous New York City Cop Sentenced to a Single Day in Jail, by Edward Lyon
- Nebraska Supreme Court: Multiple Theft Charges for Stealing Items Belonging to Several People at Same Time and Place Violates Double Jeopardy, by Dale Chappell
- Fourth Circuit: Standalone Rehaif Error Requires Automatic Vacatur of Guilty Plea, by David Reutter
- Is the Death Penalty Slowly Dying Across the Nation?, by Chad Marks
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- Colorado Supreme Court: Requiring Defense to Disclose Exhibits to Prosecution Before Trial Violates Due Process Rights, by Dale Chappell
- Iowa Supreme Court Orders Dismissal of Charges that State Brought in Breach of Plea Agreement, by Douglas Ankney
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- Carpenter Slowly Remaking Fourth Amendment Case Law, by Anthony Accurso
- California Federal Court Rejects Plea Agreement’s Waiver of Compassionate Release Provision, by David Reutter
- Aggressive NYPD Police Tactics Spreading COVID-19, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
- COVID-19 Causing Some Pretrial Detainees to Spend More Time in Jail, by Douglas Ankney
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- Report: Risk Assessment Tools not Effective, Especially When not Used, by Kevin Bliss
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- Army Veteran Serving Life Without Parole for Taking $9, by Douglas Ankney
- Sixth Circuit Vacates Firearms Possession Conviction; Government Showed Jury Unauthenticated Prejudicial Facebook Video Not Admitted as Evidence, by Matthew Clarke
- News in Brief
More from Douglas Ankney:
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- California Court of Appeal: Defendant’s ‘Novel Interpretation’ of Pen. Code § 1203.01 Entitles Him to Have Trial Court Consider Motion to Correct Post-Judgment Record 40 Years After Conviction Final, Sept. 15, 2022
- New Jersey Supreme Court Orders New Trial Because Detective Failed to Clarify Suspect’s Ambiguous Request for Counsel During Interrogation, Sept. 15, 2022
- Ohio Supreme Court: Amendment to Statute That Shifts Burden of Proof to State Regarding Self-Defense Applies to All Pending and New Trials After Effective Date, Regardless of When Alleged Crime Occurred, Sept. 15, 2022
- New Mexico Supreme Court Announces Judicial Misconduct May Bar Retrial Under Double Jeopardy Clause of State Constitution, Sept. 15, 2022
- Understanding Environmental Effects on Blowflies Permits Fine-Tuning of Evidence Revealed From Fly Colonization of Decomposing Bodies, Sept. 15, 2022
- New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Framework for Determining Constitutionality of Warrantless Protective Sweep of Home Where Arrest Is Made Outside the Home, Aug. 15, 2022
- First Circuit: Procedurally Unreasonable for District Court to Base Upward Variance on Defendant’s Prior Arrests, Aug. 15, 2022
- Minnesota Supreme Court Announces Expanding Scope of Traffic Stop to Investigate Occupant’s Pretrial Release Conditions Violates Minnesota Constitution, Aug. 15, 2022
- Sixth Circuit Reverses Denial of First Step Act Relief Because Sentence Imposed Is Substantively Unreasonable, Aug. 15, 2022
More from these topics:
- Sentencing Reports Show Longer Sentences, Few Compassionate Releases, Oct. 31, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Compassionate Release.
- SCOTUS Reinstates Boston Marathon Bomber’s Death Sentence, Sept. 1, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Death Penalty/Death Row.
- Even as U.S. Jail Population Declines, Average Length of Stay Rises, Sept. 1, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Sentences - Length/Severity of.
- Rhode Island Supreme Court Finds Lifer “Civil Death” Law Unconstitutional, Sept. 1, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
- First Circuit: Procedurally Unreasonable for District Court to Base Upward Variance on Defendant’s Prior Arrests, Aug. 15, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Sentences - Corrections or Modifications of, Prior Arrests.
- Use of Death Penalty Continues to Decline in the U.S., Aug. 15, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Death Penalty.
- Sixth Circuit: Government Cannot Withdraw Consent to Lesser Included Charge After Defendant Pleaded Guilty but Court Reject Plea Agreement, Aug. 15, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Rejection.
- Federal Judge Allows Retroactive Benefit Reduction for Incarcerated Veteran, Aug. 1, 2022. Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Veterans.
- Life Sentences Commuted for Two Massachusetts Prisoners Convicted of First-Degree Murder, Aug. 1, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2).
- California Court of Appeal: Gang Enhancements Remanded for Retrial Under AB 333; Sameness Requirement Satisfied, July 15, 2022. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Gang Membership.
