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Ronald Gene Simmons - Wikipedia

  • ️Mon Jul 15 1940

Ronald Gene Simmons

BornJuly 15, 1940
DiedJune 25, 1990 (aged 49)
Cause of deathExecution by lethal injection
Criminal statusExecuted
SpouseBersabe Rebecca "Becky" Ulibarri (m. 1960; died 1987)
Children7
ConvictionCapital murder (16 counts)
Criminal penaltyDeath
Details
DateDecember 22–28, 1987
CountryUnited States
LocationsDover and Russellville, Arkansas
TargetsFamily, acquaintance, strangers
Killed16
Injured4
Weapons

Ronald Gene Simmons

Allegiance United States
Service / branch United States Navy (1957–63)
 United States Air Force (c. 1965–1979)
Years of service1957–1963 (USN)
c. 1965–1979 (USAF)
Rank Master sergeant (USAF)
AwardsBronze Star Medal
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross
Airforce Ribbon for Excellent Marksmanship
Spouse(s)Bersabe Rebecca "Becky" Ulibarri (died 1987)

Ronald Gene Simmons Sr. (July 15, 1940 – June 25, 1990) was an American mass murderer who killed 16 people over a week-long period in Arkansas in 1987 and wounded several others. A retired military serviceman, Simmons murdered fourteen members of his family, including a daughter he had sexually abused and the child he had fathered with her, as well as a former co-worker, and a stranger; he also wounded four others. He is the most prolific mass murderer in Arkansas history.[1]

Simmons was sentenced to death on each of the sixteen counts, and after refusing to appeal his sentence, was executed on June 25, 1990. His refusal to appeal was the subject of a 1990 US Supreme Court case, Whitmore v. Arkansas.

Personal life and military career

[edit]

Ronald Gene Simmons was born to Loretta and William Simmons on July 15, 1940, in Chicago, Illinois. On January 31, 1943, William Simmons died of a stroke. Within a year, Simmons's mother had remarried, this time to William D. Griffen, a civil engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In 1946, the corps moved Griffen to Little Rock, Arkansas, the first of several transfers that would take the family across central Arkansas over the next decade.

On September 5, 1957, Simmons dropped out of school and joined the U.S. Navy. In July 1959, Simmons, a Yeoman Third Class was assigned to the USS Missouri then berthed with the Pacific Reserve Fleet at Naval Station Bremerton in Washington, where he met Bersabe Rebecca "Becky" Ulibarri at a USO dance at the Bremerton YMCA.

The couple was married in Raton,New Mexico on July 9, 1960. Over the next 18 years, the couple had seven children.[2]

On July 13, 1962, Simmons left the Navy, and, in January 1963, joined the U.S. Air Force. During his over 20-year administrative specialist military career, Simmons was awarded a Bronze Star Medal,[3] the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross[4], and the Air Force Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon. Simmons retired from the Air Force and military service on November 30, 1979, with the rank of master sergeant. Simmons' service record was spotless and his performance marks were often exemplary. Simmons's career in the Air Force was primarily clerical.[2]

From 1976 to 1981, the family lived on a 2-acre property in Wills Canyon near the small town of Cloudcroft, New Mexico.[2]

In April 1976, Air Force Master Sergeant R. Gene Simmons was assigned to the Space and Missile Systems Organization (SAMSO) observatory high in the Sacramento Mountains east of Alamogordo. The SAMSO Electro-Optical Research Facility focused its telescopes on air force communications satellites and detectors on high-flying aircraft. Located thirty-two miles from Holloman AFB, the observatory was a semiautonomous post with a personnel roster of one officer and seven enlisted personnel, with Simmons being the senior enlisted man. All had top security clearances.[2]

In November 1976, the Air Force announced that the observatory would be placed "on a caretaker status as soon as feasible." Simmons assumed more and more of the duties as the site staffing numbers shrunk and was eventually the one who "turned out the lights" when the observatory was deactivated in June 1978. Simmons was transferred to the 6585th Test Group at Holloman AFB[2]

Late in 1979, Simmons, who had over 20 years of service, chose to retire when faced with the possibility of a promotion that would require a transfer to Turkey.[2]

On May 5, 1981, Simmons began working as a GS-4 civil service employee at Holloman Air Force Base near Alamogordo. [2]

In 1981, Simmons was being investigated for multiple allegations of child sex abuse and that he had impregnated his 17-year-old daughter, Sheila.

Otero County Sheriff's Department Investigator Bill Woltz said that authorities were tipped off by a teenage friend in whom Sheila had confided. However, when a deputy was dispatched to investigate, Sheila and her mother refused to discuss the matter.

Simmons' oldest child, Ronald Gene Simmons, Jr., reported the incest allegation to the Otero County office of Social Services on April 17.[2] An immediate investigation was started and the following week, the county social services office reported Simmons to the District Attorney in nearby Alamogordo, Steve Sanders. DA Sanders assembled evidence that students, parents, and teachers had provided, but it was mostly tidbits of hearsay that couldn't be used in court. Sanders said Simmons wasn't immediately arrested because the family refused to discuss the matter and that Simmons wasn't prosecuted earlier because authorities had no reason to believe he would flee with his family.[5]

Sanders subpoenaed Sheila to appear before a grand jury. After being threatened with arrest for contempt of court, Sheila reluctantly appeared and testified against her father, telling the jurors that her father had intimate relations with her three times. Sanders said, "She testified for two hours. She was obviously pregnant. She broke down and cried. She said she didn't want her father to go to prison."[6]

After a three-count indictment of incest was handed down, on August 11, 1981, sheriff deputies drove to Wills Canyon, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico to arrest Simmons, but the house was empty, and there was no forwarding address.[7][8] The New Mexico incest charges against Simmons were still open but had been "conditionally dropped" August 10, 1982, meaning they could be reinstated.[9][6]

Fearing arrest, Simmons fled with his family, first to Ward, Arkansas in Lonoke County, where he worked as a civilian records clerk for the Veterans' Administration in Little Rock and then a waivers clerk in a Little Rock Army recruiting office.[4]

Purchasing a small "farm too far from Little Rock to commute" on June 12, 1983, the family took up residence on a 14-acre tract of land[10][11] in Pope County, 6.5 miles north of Dover that they would dub "Mockingbird Hill."[2][9] Two days after the family moved in, a "No trespassing" sign went up at the bottom of the road and a barbed wire fence came soon after.[12]

The home was an eight-room residence, built around a mobile home.[11][13] The telephone, heat and air conditioning didn't work. The family used two nearby outhouses because the toilet was broken.[14] The home was surrounded by a makeshift privacy fence that was as high as 10 feet tall in some places. Several weeks before Christmas, Simmons had ordered his family to dig a new privy pit, which would eventually be where he disposed of some of their bodies.[15][2]

Even at home, Simmons was a recluse who spent much of his time at home in his room alone.[16]

He was described as a quiet and stingy man—an unsmiling man with a piercing stare[12]—who compelled his children to perform heavy labor, such as carrying five-gallon containers of dirt to maintain a steep driveway. Loretta Simmons, 17, described her father as a "drunken bum" to a school classmate who occasionally stayed overnight and who said Simmons "had a beer in his hand all the time. He had one little room he would stay in all the time. It was dark and seemed spooky and it stunk. Nobody ever went in there but him."[17] It was the only room with an inside lock and had always been off-limits to the children.[2]

In Pope County, Simmons worked a string of low-paying jobs, going from a janitor's job at a pickle plant in Atkins to a part-time clerk on the nightshift at a convenience store in Russellville.[12] He quit a position as an accounts receivable clerk at Woodline Motor Freight on November 19, 1986, after numerous reports of inappropriate sexual advances.[9] He worked weekend night shifts at a Sinclair Mini Mart[2] for approximately three and a half years[18] before quitting on December 18, 1987.[19]

By the time of the killings, the number of people within the home had reduced to seven, as two of the older children (Billy and Sheila) moved out, married, and had children of their own.

Simmons' home (near Dover)

[edit]

Shortly before Christmas 1987, Simmons decided to kill all the members of his family. On the morning of December 22, he first killed his wife Rebecca and eldest son Gene by bludgeoning them and shooting them with a .22-caliber pistol.[20] He then killed his three-year-old granddaughter Barbara by strangulation. Simmons dumped the bodies in a pit he had forced his children to dig previously. Simmons then waited for his other children to return from school for Christmas break. Based on crime scene investigation, it is believed the Simmons children, Loretta, Eddy, Marianne, and Becky (ages seventeen, fourteen, eleven, and eight) were separated and killed individually, by strangulation and/or drowning in a rain barrel, and subsequently dumped in the hole dug for an outhouse.[15] The older six relatives were shot as many as seven times each.[21][20]

Around mid-day on December 26, the remaining family members arrived at the home, as Simmons had invited them over for the holidays. The first to be killed was Simmons' son Billy and his wife Renata, who were both shot dead. He then strangled and drowned their 20-month-old son, Trae. Simmons also shot and killed his oldest daughter, Sheila (whom he had sexually abused), and her husband, Dennis McNulty. Simmons then strangled his child by Sheila, seven-year-old Sylvia Gail, and finally, his 21-month-old grandson Michael. Simmons laid the bodies of his whole family in neat rows in the lounge. Their bodies were covered with coats except that of Sheila, who was covered by Rebecca Simmons' best tablecloth. The bodies of Trae and Michael were wrapped in plastic sheeting and left in abandoned cars at the end of the lane. After the murders, Simmons drove to a Sears store in Russellville, where he retrieved Christmas gifts that he had previously ordered for his family. That night, he went for a drink at a private club in Russellville—Pope County being a dry county, alcoholic beverages were only available in "private" clubs—before returning home where he spent the rest of the evening and the following day drinking beer and watching television.[15]

On the morning of December 28, Simmons drove a Toyota[2] belonging to his oldest son, Gene—Ronald Gene Simmons, Jr.—,to Russellville. His first target was Kathy Cribbins Kendrick at Peel, Eddy and Gibbons Law Firm. Simmons had been infatuated with Kendrick when they both worked at Woodline Motor Freight Company, but she had rejected him. After walking into the office, he shot and killed Kendrick. He next went to an oil company office, where he intended to kill the owner, Russell "Rusty" Taylor. Taylor had previously also owned the Sinclair Mini Mart[22] from which Simmons had recently resigned. He shot and wounded Taylor before killing another person in the building named James David Chaffin; Chaffin was the only deceased victim who was a stranger to Simmons.[23] Another employee in the building was shot at, though the bullet missed.[15]

Simmons then drove on to Sinclair Mini Mart, shooting and wounding David Salyer, the store owner and manager, and store clerk Roberta Woolery.[22][24][18] His final target was the office of the Woodline Motor Freight Company, where he shot his former supervisor twice, wounding her.[25] He then ordered one of the employees at gunpoint to call the police, telling her “I’ve come to do what I wanted to do. It’s all over now. I’ve gotten everybody who wanted to hurt me.”[26][15]

When the police arrived, Russellville Police Chief Herb Johnson entered the building unarmed alone. Simmons handed over his gun and surrendered without any resistance. Johnson later recalled, "When I was walking him to the car I asked him 'Why didn't you kill yourself?' He said he was afraid he would make a mess of it. He didn't want to be a vegetable.[27]

After his first trial, his attorney substantiated Simmons' intent, saying his client never intended to survive, that he intended to take his life after the Russellville shootings, but didn't "because of the trouble he was having killing people....He shot seven people—only two of them died."[28]

Throughout the 45-minute-long rampage, "wielding" two revolvers, Simmons had killed, wounded four others and briefly held a woman hostage.[29]

Charges and investigation

[edit]

On December 29, 1987, Circuit Court Judge John G. Patterson ordered Simmons held without bond and assigned two local lawyers, John Harris and Robert E. "Doc" Irwin as his defense attorneys [30] after Russellville Police Chief Herb Johnson filed information accusing Simmons of two counts of capitol murdere and four of attempted capitol murder.[31]

On December 31, 1987, Pope County sheriff's investigators said they believed Ronald Gene Simmons, Sr., might have been enraged after learning that his wife was secretly preparing to leave and divorce him.[32][12] In Russellville, witnesses told them Simmons harbored personal grudges against victims shot in Russellville and that he had an unrequited amorous infatuation with Kathy Kendrict who had rejected repeated advances and filed a sexual harassment complaint against Simmons.[30]

In a summer 1987 four-page handwritten letter from Rebecca Simmons to son William, she wrote, in part, "I am a prisoner here and the kids too ... Dad has had me like a prisoner ...." "I don't want to live the rest of my life with Dad." "Every time I think of freedom I want out as soon as possible." The slain wife of R. Gene Simmons was contemplating leaving, but worried she could not find a job but decided to wait. "God is telling me to be more patient, Right now I'll just say (I'll) do some checking and then it will help me make my decision." "I know when I get out I might need help, Dad has had me like a prisoner, that the freedom might be hard for me to take, yet I know it would be great, having my children visit me anytime, having a telephone, going shopping if I want, going to church." The letter depicts a suppressed, isolated family living in fear.[33][34][35]

Surrender versus suicide

[edit]

It was thought that Simmons planned to kill himself after his rampage in Russellville. When it took several shots from the 22 pistol to kill several victims, he realized that using it for suicide might not kill him and might, instead, just leave him disabled.

Date Name Age Relationship Cause of death
December 22, 1987
Ronald Gene Simmons Jr. 26 Son Gunshot
Bersabe Rebecca Simmons 46[21] Wife Gunshot
Barbara Simmons[36] 3 Granddaughter [21] Strangulation
Loretta Simmons 17[37] Daughter Strangulation
Eddy Simmons 14[38] Son Strangulation
Marianne Simmons 11[38] Daughter Strangulation
Rebecca "Becky" Simmons 8[38] Daughter Strangulation
December 26, 1987
William "Billy" Simmons II 22[38] Son Gunshot
Renata[39] Simmons 21[38] Daughter-in-Law Gunshot
William H. "Trae" Simmons III 1[21][37] Grandson Drowning
Sheila Simmons McNulty 24 Daughter Gunshot
Dennis McNulty 33 Son-in-Law Gunshot
Sylvia Gail McNulty 7 Granddaughter/Daughter Strangulation
Michael McNulty 1 Grandson Strangulation
December 28, 1987
Kathleen "Kathy" Kendrick 24 Acquaintance Gunshot
James David "Jim" Chaffin 33[37] Stranger Gunshot

Trials, Convictions, and Appeals

[edit]

On December 30, 1987, Simmons was transferred from the Pope County Detention Center to the Arkansas State Hospital in Little Rock[40] after Circuit Judge John Patterson ordered him held without bond and to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. On February 29, 1988, he was returned to Pope County[2] where Judge Patterson accepted a state hospital finding that he was competent to stand trial and that he was sane at the time of the slayings. Patterson also set a May 9 trial date.[41]

Trial for Russellville shootings

[edit]

Simmons didn't plead guilty. He wanted the death penalty from the very beginning. A death sentence, under Arkansas law, was only permitted upon a jury's recommendation. If he had pled guilty, the only available sentence would have been life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.[28]

Defended by two local court-appointed attorneys,[8] John Harris and Robert "Doc" Irwin,[20][42] Simmons first went on trial in Ozark—moved there because of widespread news coverage[43]—for capital murder for the killings of Kendrick and Chaffin, five counts of attempted murder and a kidnapping charge. In the four-day trial, Simmons was linked to shootings at four businesses through eyewitness accounts and ballistics evidence.[44][45]

The defense rested without presenting evidence or calling witnesses. They had previously decided against an insanity defense.[42]

Prosecutor John Bynum, arguing for death, said, "There is nothing in the record that says this man is entitled to a break—nothing.[46]

Simmons was found guilty on May 12, 1988, and was sentenced to death.[47][15] Simmons was also sentenced for 30 years for each of four attempted capital murder counts, 20 years for a fifth attempted capital court, and 7 years for a first-degree false imprisonment charge.[48]

After jurors had been excused, Simmons told Circuit Judge John Patterson he had a statement to make. Speaking softly from the witness stand, Simmons stated in open court that, after careful thought and consideration, he was ready to waive all his rights to appeal.[44][49] His statement included the following:

I, Ronald Gene Simmons, Sr., want it to be known that it is my wish and my desire that absolutely no action by anybody be taken to appeal or in any way change this sentence.

It is further respectfully requested that this sentence be carried out expeditiously. I want no action that will delay, deny, defer, or denounce this very correct and proper death sentence.[50]

Judge Patterson reminded Simmons that "any time prior to execution, you have the right to change your mind and appeal." Simmons told the court that his decision was made the day of the shootings in Russellville and that he wouldn't change his mind.[51]

On May 16, Judge Patterson found Simmons to be of sound mind and could waive his right to appeal. Patterson issued an order for Simmons to be executed by lethal injection at 11 a.m. June 27.[52] Calling his sentence "proper punishment for the crime," Simmons told the judge he would not try to stop the execution. "I arrived at my decision in regard to the proper punishment on Dec. 28 and don't hold your breath for me to change it.[53]

Simmons property sold at auction

[edit]

In early January 1988, Dorothy Gueller of Woodhaven, N.Y., filed a foreclosure suit against Simmons seeking return of the property she sold Simmons on Broomfield Road and $28,081 she said was still owed.[54]The foreclosure petition was approved in May after there had been no payments since November 1987. On June 15, the property was sold at auction on the steps of the Pope County Courthouse. The only bid came from the woman Simmons had bought the property from.[11]

[edit]

In a 6-1 ruling, the Arkansas Supreme Court issued a temporary stay of the execution on June 20 after attorney Mark S. Cambiano for Catholic priest Louis J. Franz raised issues of whether Arkansas had or should have had a mandatory review of capital cases or the waiver of appeals in such cases.[55]

On June 21, Circuit Judge Patterson said that the trial for the murders of Simmons family members, initially scheduled for July 18, would be postponed indefinitely pending decisions by the higher court.[56]

The Arkansas Supreme Court terminated the temporary stay on July 1, 1988, in a 5-2 ruling,[57] holding that Rev. Franz did not have standing in the case and that Simmons understood his choice not to appeal. They also held that automatic appeals were not mandated but that the court would not automatically acquiesce to a defendant's desire to decline his right to appeal. [58]

With the stay lifted on July 15, on July 15, Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton set Simmons's execution date for August 9 in a letter to A.L. "Art" Lockhart, director of the Arkansas Department of Corrections.[59]

U.S. District Judge G. Thomas Eisele stayed the execution on August 3, 1988, telling lawyers he would decide later in the month whether a court review in death penalty cases is mandatory but wouldn't consider if others had standing to intervene nor whether Simmons was competent to waive his right to appeal.[60] Eisele's stay came after attorney Mark Cambiano filed motions on August 2 on behalf of Catholic priest Louis J. Franz and Darrel Wayne Hill, an inmate who was also on death row.[61]

Attorney Mark Cambiano filed a motion on August 12 asking that a temporary guardian be appointed to Simmons, claiming that Simmons' attorneys, John Harris and Robert W. "Doc" Irwin, had provided ineffective assistance of counsel.[62]

After Circuit Judge John S. Patterson scheduled a tentative trial date for the first week of December, defense attorneys requested Simmons be brought to Russellville to make him more accessible for preparation of motions pending in state and federal courts. Simmons was moved from death row to the Russellville jail on August 19[63] and returned to death row at the Maximum Security Unit near Tucker on September 1.[64]

Judge Eisele ruled on September 23 that Rev. Franz and inmate Hill did not have standing to appeal Simmons' execution and that Simmons himself must make any further appeals in the case. He also ruled that the Arkansas Supreme Court had established that mandatory capital case appeals were not required.[65]

On September 29, Judge Eisele ordered more psychiatric evaluations for Simmons and appointed Little Rock lawyer John Wesley Hall, Jr., to advise him on possible avenues of appeal. Before making a final ruling on the competency issue, Eisele wanted a 30-day assessment of Simmons by authorities at the Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri. [66]

A December 29 provided to the Arkansas attorney general's office by Judge Eisle ruled that Simmons could waive his right to appeal his conviction.[67]

Trial for family killings

[edit]

On December 21, Judge John Patterson issued an order moving Simmons' trial for the murders of his 14 family members to Clarksville, in Johnson County because of pre-trial publicity.[68]

On January 18, 1989, Judge Patterson refused to bar most of the evidence the state gained when officers entered Simmons' home. Sheriff Jim Bolen and other officers entered the home on December 27, 1987, after Simmons had been arrested in Russellville following the shootings there. They testified that their concern was for the welfare of the family. Bolin said he thought they could be injured, perhaps bleeding to death in the house and that his fear was based on Simmons' reaction—a quivering lip and tearful eyes—when asked about his family, though he wouldn't answer any questions.[69]

On February 9, in testimony, Dr. Bennett G. Preston, former assistant medical examiner for Arkansas, summarized what he found when he did autopsies on the 14 bodies. Other testimony indicated that no firearms were found at the Simmons home.[70]

Simmons was found guilty on February 10, 1989, again being sentenced to death by lethal injection. As to motive, a family friend told investigators that Simmons' wife had been saving up money to divorce Simmons when the killings happened. During the trial Simmons had to be removed from the courtroom for punching the prosecutor, John Bynum, and trying to grab a deputy's handgun, after Bynum had introduced a letter between Simmons and his daughter Sheila in which Simmons expressed anger that Sheila had revealed that he was the father of her child, and that he would see her in Hell.[1][71] He refused to appeal his death sentence, stating, "To those who oppose the death penalty – in my particular case, anything short of death would be cruel and unusual punishment." The trial court conducted a hearing concerning Simmons' competence to waive further proceedings, and concluded that his decision was knowing and intelligent.

Simmons became the subject of the United States Supreme Court case Whitmore v. Arkansas when another death row inmate, Jonas Whitmore, attempted unsuccessfully to force an appeal of Simmons' case.[72]

While on death row, Simmons had to be separated from other prisoners as his life was threatened constantly. This was because he refused to appeal his death sentence; the other prisoners believed Simmons was damaging their chances of beating their own death sentences.

In June, Assistant Attorney General Jack Gillean said Simmons could stop the execution at any time up to the point of the lethal injection by saying he wanted to pursue his right to an appeal. "That is because he is a volunteer, which is the word we're using for people who aren't appealing and who want to be executed."[56][20]

On May 31, 1990, Arkansas governor (later President) Bill Clinton signed Simmons' execution warrant, and on June 25, he died by the method he had chosen, lethal injection, in the Cummins Unit.[73] The execution commenced at 9:02 p.m. CDT and he was declared dead at 9:19 p.m.[74] None of his surviving relatives would claim the body, and he was buried in a potter's field in Lincoln County, Arkansas.[15][20]

  1. ^ a b Roberts, Adam (December 22, 1922). "One of Arkansas' worst mass murders happened on Christmas week 1987". KHBS / KHOG. Archived from the original on December 26, 2022. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Marshall, Bryce; Williams, Paul (1991). Zero at the Bone: Story of Gene Simmons Mass Murder. Pocket Star Books. ISBN 978-0-671-68511-9. Retrieved November 3, 2022. (Internet Archive)
  3. ^ Marshall, Bryce; Williams, Paul (1991). Zero at the Bone: Story of Gene Simmons Mass Murder. Pocket Star Books. p. 128. ISBN 978-0-671-68511-9. Retrieved March 3, 2025. Gene's unstinting devotion to his job was rewarded with a Bronze Star for meritorious service, the highest decoration a serviceman can receive for anything other than heroism. Gene composed the first draft of the Bronze Star citation, characterizing himself in phrases that do not appear in the final recommendation...
  4. ^ a b May, Patrick (January 1, 1988). "Ozark Wall hid family's secrets". The Miamai Herald. No. 32, 75th year. Miami Florida. pp. 1A, 18A. Retrieved March 2, 2025.
  5. ^ "School nurse blames breakdown in system". Alamogordo Daily News. No. 313 Vol 93. Alamagordo, New Mexico. Associated Press. December 31, 1987. p. 12. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  6. ^ a b "Massacre suspect once charged with incest". The Tampa Tribune. Russellville, Ark. December 31, 1987. p. 96. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
  7. ^ Marcus, David L (December 31, 1987). "1981 Simmons Prosecution Stalled by Family". Philadelphia Daily News. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Lenfest Institute. p. 11. Retrieved February 22, 2025.
  8. ^ a b Necessary, Jeff (December 30, 1987). "Worst family mass murder ever- Questions about killer continue". The Daily News. Bogalusa-Franklinton, Louisiana: Lou Major. UPI. Retrieved February 22, 2025.
  9. ^ a b c Lewis, Jay (December 30, 1987). "Toll at 16 in Arkansas massacre - Suspect Ronald Gene Simmons answers questioners with total silence". The Daily Item. No. 19, Vol 220. Lynn, Massachusetts. Scrips Howard News Service. p. 4. Retrieved February 22, 2025.
  10. ^ Scudder, James (September 13, 1988). "Homeowners not troubled by publicity over deaths". Baxter Bulletin. No. 254, Vol. 87. Mountain Home, Arkansas: Wayne E. Gay. p. 5. Retrieved February 25, 2025. The R. Gene Simmons house and 14 acres of land near Dover was sold at auction July (actually June) 15 at the Pope County Courthouse and only one bid was received.
  11. ^ a b c "Bid to make slaying site a shrine fails". The Commecial Appeal. No. 241, 149th Year. Memphis, Tennessee. June 17, 1988. p. 8. Retrieved February 25, 2025. Pope County Circuit Clerk Juanita Barber read the auction notice Wednesday on the steps of the courthouse. Included in the sale was a house—consisted of a trailer with built-on frame additions—and about 14 acres
  12. ^ a b c d Franklin, Stephen (December 31, 1987). "'I've gotten everybody who wanted to hurt me,'". Lexington Herald-leader. No. 363 Vol 5. Lexington, Kentucky. Chicago Tribune. pp. A1, A6. Retrieved March 2, 2025.
  13. ^ "R. Gene Simmons home". The Daily Intelligencer. Doylestown, Pennsylvania. AP Photo. December 30, 1987. p. 51. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  14. ^ "A year later, authorities still have no motive for 16 Christmas killings". The Intelligencer. No. 309 Vol 98. Doylestown, Pennsylvania: Charles P. Smith, Sr. Associated Press. p. 31. Retrieved March 1, 2025. The telephone, heat and air conditioning never worked and the family apparently used two nearby outhouses because the toilet was broken.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g Swanlund, Angela. "Ronald Gene Simmons (1940-1990)". encyclopediaofarkansas.net. Archived from the original on January 18, 2025. Retrieved March 2, 2025.
  16. ^ Sheppard, David (December 30, 1987). "Accused killer faced charges in NM". The New Mexican. Sante Fe, New Mexico. pp. A1 – A2. Retrieved February 27, 2025. Wilma Simmons said her former father-in-law was a recluse who often stayed in his room alone to avoid contact with his family.
  17. ^ Simmons, Bill (December 30, 1987). "Murder Suspect Was 'Slavedriver" To Wife, Children, Neighbors Say". Courier News. Blytheville, Arkansas. AP. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  18. ^ a b "Victim identifies ex-New Mexican as gunman". The Albuquerque Tribune. Albequerque, New Mexico. Associated Press. May 11, 1988. p. 5. Retrieved March 1, 2025. Woolery identified Simmons as the gunman and said she and Simmons had been co-workers at the market for 3½ years.
  19. ^ "Death toll in massacre at 16". The Miami Herald. No. 31, 78th year. Knight Ridder. December 31, 1987. p. 4A. Retrieved February 23, 2025. Sheriff's Lt. Jay Winters said Simmons had worked at the Sinclair Mini-Mart until Dec. 18.
  20. ^ a b c d e Bouchard, Tiffany; Ulsperger, Jason Shawn (September 2014). Defending Ronald Gene Simmons: A Question and Answer Session with Attorney John Harris (Technical report). Arkansas Tech University. Retrieved February 22, 2025.
  21. ^ a b c d Associated Press (January 1, 1988). "Arkansas massacre victims eulogized at funerals". Ocala Star-Banner. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  22. ^ a b Merriweather, James (December 29, 1987). "Man shot by Simmons saved by chair". UPI. Retrieved March 3, 2025. A convenience store manager shot in the head during a rampage that left 16 people dead and four wounded in northern Arkansas apparently was saved by a wooden chair he threw at the gunman, a hospital spokesman said.
  23. ^ "James David "J.D." Chaffin, age 33". gunmemorial.org. Archived from the original on November 5, 2022. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
  24. ^ "Wounded Convenience Store Manager Recognized Gunman As Ex-Employee". Courier News. Blytheville, Arkansas: Park Newspapers, Inc. Associated Press. December 30, 1987. p. 12. Retrieved February 27, 2025. Salyer said the gunman was R. Gene Simmons, 47, who had worked for him until Dec. 18, when he quit his part-time job.
  25. ^ "Victim of shooting spree plagued with nightmares". United Press International. May 11, 1988. Archived from the original on October 22, 2021. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
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  27. ^ Wallis, Frank (December 27, 2007). "Chief remember bloody December". Baxter Bulletin. Mountain Home, Arkansas: Betty Barker Smith. pp. 1, 12. Retrieved February 27, 2025. I guess I did a foolish thing that day, but when all that is going down at the same time, you don't think, you just react.
  28. ^ a b "Attorney: Killer got what he wanted". The Wilson Daily Times. No. 74 Vol 92. Wilson, North Carolina: Morgan P. Dickerman III. Associated Press. May 13, 1988. p. 22. Retrieved March 1, 2025.
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  30. ^ a b Necessary, Jeff (December 29, 1987). "Authorities searching near a backwoods home today found the..." UPI. Retrieved February 27, 2025.
  31. ^ "I got them all, suspect said". The Daily Times. Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Associated Press. December 31, 1987. p. 8. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  32. ^ Harris, John F. (December 31, 1987). "Divorce plans may be motives in Arkasas Killings, probers say". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C.: Katharine Graham. Retrieved February 27, 2025. Investigators said they do not know how Simmons learned of his wife's divorce plans, but they said they believe she was trying to keep him from finding out." " 'From everything we've learned about the family and his behavior, we think he would have been the last person she would have told,' (sheriff's Lt. Jay) Winters said.
  33. ^ "Wife of suspected mass killer contemplated leaving him". The New Mexican. Sante Fe, New Mexico: Robert M. McKenney. Associated Press. January 4, 1988. p. 1. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  34. ^ Simmons, Bill (January 4, 1988). "Letter May Give Motive for Murders". The Winchester Star. No. 154, 92nd year. Winchester, Virginia: Thomas T. Byrd. Associated Press. p. 6. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  35. ^ "Wife's letter motive in mass slayings?". The Orange County Register. Santa Ana, California: Clarence and Harry Hoiles. Associated Press. January 4, 1988. p. A6. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  36. ^ Conflicting Sources: some have listed Barbara as a daughter, while others label her a granddaughter.
  37. ^ a b c Associated Press (January 1, 1988). "Massacre Victims Eulogized at Funerals With AM-Algona Killings". Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  38. ^ a b c d e "Sheriff reconstructs the murders of 16". The New York Times. January 1, 1988. Archived from the original on November 26, 2018. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  39. ^ Some sources spell her name "Renada."
  40. ^ Simmons, Bill (December 31, 1987). "Simmons told hostage he'd come 'to do what I wanted'". Baxter Bulleton. No. 34, Vol 87. Mountain Home, Arkansas: Wayne E. Gay. p. 1. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  41. ^ "Mass murder suspect conpentent for trial". The Ottumwa Courier. Ottumwa, Iowa. Associated Press. March 1, 1988. p. 2. Retrieved March 1, 2025.
  42. ^ a b "Man accused of killing 16 on trial". Gettysburg Times. No. 111 Vol 86. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania: James A. Kalbaugh. May 10, 1988. p. 5A. Retrieved March 1, 2025. 'We plead not guilty and we're just going to make them prove their case,' defense attorney John Harris said Sunday. 'We're just going to see that they don't get out of line, that they give him a fair trial.'
  43. ^ "Simmons Granted Change of Venue". Courier News. No. 266 Vol 93. Blytheville, Arkansas. March 25, 1988. p. 3. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  44. ^ a b Reel, Guy (May 13, 1988). "Simmons requests no delay of death". The Commercial Appeal. No. 191, 149th year. Ozark, Ark. pp. 1, 11. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
  45. ^ "Witness identifies gunman in multiple killings". Sante Fe New Mexican. Sante Fe, New Mexico. Associated Press. May 12, 1988. p. A6. Retrieved March 1, 2025. According to police, Simmons used two .22-caliber revaovers...
  46. ^ "Man convicted, sentenced to death in mass slayings". Bakersfield Californian. No. 134 Vol 102. Bakersfiel, California: Berenice Fritts Koerber. Associated Press. May 13, 1988. p. 5. Retrieved March 1, 2025.
  47. ^ "Accused mass killer guilty of 2 deaths". San Francisco Examiner. May 12, 1988. p. A2. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
  48. ^ "Mass killer: Let me die, too - Jury gives death sentence for Christmas killing spree". Daily Herald. Arlington Heights, Illinois: Paddock Publications, Inc. May 13, 1988. p. 3. Retrieved March 1, 2025.
  49. ^ "Franz v. State". law.justia.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2022. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  50. ^ "Killer pleads for a speedy execution". San Francisco Examiner. Ozark, Arkansas: The Hearst Corporation. Associated Press. May 13, 1988. p. A2. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
  51. ^ "Judge Thanked For Granting Plea For Death". Courier News. No. 4 Vol 94. Blytheville, Arkansas: Park Newspapers, Inc. May 17, 1988. p. 3. Retrieved March 1, 2025.
  52. ^ "Judge Sets execution at murderer's request". Baraboo New Republic. Baraboo, Wisconsin. UPI. May 17, 1988. p. 16. Retrieved February 24, 2025. Patterson announced his decision to permit Simmons to waive his right to appeal after hearing testimony from Dr. Irving Kuo, a psychiatrist with the State Hospital.
  53. ^ "Accused family slayer gets request for speedy execution in Arkansas". The Evansville Press. No. 273, 82nd year. Evansville, Indiana. United Press International. May 17, 1988. p. 24. Retrieved February 24, 2025.
  54. ^ "Foreclosure Suit On Simmns' Land Filed". Courier News. No. 220 Vol 93. Blytheville, Arkansas. Associated Press. January 20, 1988. p. 5. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
  55. ^ Franz ex rel. Simmons v. State, 296 Ark. 111, (Ark. 1988), casetext (Arkansas Supreme Court June 20, 1988) ("Petition for Temporary Relief from Franklin Circuit Court; John Patterson, Judge; temporary stay of execution granted.")
  56. ^ a b "High court stops Simmons execution". The Daily World. No. 100 Vol. 117. Helena-West Helena, Arkansas: Roy H. Park. Associated Press. June 21, 1988. p. 1. Retrieved February 24, 2025.
  57. ^ "Court ends stay of execution on Arkansas". The News-Star. No. 267 Vol. 59. Monroe-West Monroe, Louisiana: George H. Van Wagner. Associated Press. July 12, 1988. p. 10. Retrieved February 24, 2025. Justice Tom Glaze dissented to the extent that he believed the Supreme Court's review of a death sentence appeal waiver should go back to the sentencing phase of the case. Justice Steele Hays dissented on grounds that the state ought to require review of all death sentence cases in full.
  58. ^ Rev. Louis J. FRANZ, Individually and as Next Friend of Ronald Gene Simmons, Petitioner, v. STATE of Arkansas, Respondent., Justia (July 11, 1988) ("We hold that Rev. Franz does not have standing and that the defendant understands the choice of life and death and has made a knowing and intelligent waiver of his right to appeal. Accordingly, the stay of execution which we granted on June 20, 1988, is hereby terminated. Since Rev. Franz does not have standing, he does not have standing to file a petition for rehearing. Therefore, the mandate is ordered to be issued at the time this opinion is handed down.")
  59. ^ Charton, Scott (July 16, 1988). "R. Gene Simmons execution set Aug. p". Baxter Bulletin. No. 204 Vol .87. Wayne E. Gay. Associated Press. p. 1. Retrieved February 24, 2025. Cambiano said after Monday's state Supreme Court ruling that he would seek a stay of execution from U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun, pending a decision by the nation's high court on whether it would hear the Simmons case.
  60. ^ "Simmons gets another execution stay". The Daily World. No. 207 Vol. 117. Helena-West Helena: Roy H. Park. Associated Press. August 4, 1988. Retrieved February 24, 2025. I am convinced that no decision being more important than the decision to take a life ... that we do not do so without having benefit of all arguments. I want the benefit of careful research.
  61. ^ "Death row inmate files appeal in Simmons case". The Daily World. No. 206 Vol 117. Helena - West Helena: Roy H. Park. August 3, 1988. p. 2. Retrieved February 25, 2025. Franz, who was joined by Hill as a plaintiff in the latest filing, now want U.S. District Judge G. Thomas Eisele to consider several points, including whether Arkansas is required by the federal Constitution to condict an appellate review of Simmons' and other prisoners's death sentences.
  62. ^ "Guardian sought". The Commercial Appeal. No. 323, 149th Year. Memphis, Tennessee: Scripps Howard. August 14, 1988. p. 4. Retrieved February 25, 2025.
  63. ^ "Sheriff: Simmons may be 'easiest prisoner'". Paragould Daily Press. Paragould, Arkansas: Fred A. Wulfekuhler. August 23, 1988. p. 8. Retrieved February 25, 2025. R. Gene Simmons, 48, of Dover is less of a problem than most prisoners at the Pope County Detention Center, (Sheriff James) Bolin said Monday. 'He's quiet and doesn't make any demands.'
  64. ^ "Simmons back on death row". The Commercial Appeal. No. 342, 149th Year. Memphis, Tennessee: The Memphis Publishing Company. September 3, 1988. p. 13. Retrieved February 25, 2025.
  65. ^ Rev. Louis J. FRANZ, Individually and as next friend of Ronald Gene Simmons, and Darrel Wayne Hill, Individually and as next friend of Ronald Gene Simmons, Petitioners, v. A.L. LOCKHART, Director of the Arkansas Department of Corrections, Respondent, Ronald Gene Simmons, Sr., Intervenor, Justia No. PB-B-88-444 (U.S. District Judge G. Thomas Eisele - United States District Court, E.D. Arkansas, Pine Bluff Division. September 23, 1988)
  66. ^ Reel, Guy (September 30, 1988). "More tests ordered for Simmons". The Commercial Appeal. No. 391, 149th year. Memphis, Tennessee. p. 2. Retrieved February 25, 2025. Hall will be required to advise Simmons on the issues that could be raised in an appeal, but Simmons told Judge Eisele that he was already aware that he could appeal the case.
  67. ^ "Ruling means Simmons has right to waive appeals". Courier News. No. 198 Vol 94. Blytheville, Arkansas. Associated Press. December 30, 1988. p. 1. Retrieved March 1, 2025.
  68. ^ "Judge grants change of venue for Simmons' trial". Courier News. No. 192 Vol 94. Blytheville, Arkansas. Associated Press. December 23, 1988. p. 6. Retrieved March 2, 2025.
  69. ^ "Judge refuses to suppress main evidence in mass murder case". Northwest Arkansas Times. No. 215 Vol 123. Fayetteville, Arkansas. Associated Press. January 20, 1989. p. 9B. Retrieved March 2, 2025. Police had the right to go into the house because there was a resonable basis for thinking that family members might be in need of medical help, the judge said. The entry into the grave and the cars was legal under another doctrine—the principle that says that a person's fields and forests are not entitled to the same privacy protection as his house and lawn.
  70. ^ "Simmons says in note he would see daughter in hell". Northwest Arkansas Times. No. 236 Vol 123. Fayetteville, Arkansas: G. Daryl Henning. Associated Press. February 10, 1989. p. 3A. Retrieved March 2, 2025. Note: see article for more details on causes of deaths.
  71. ^ "ARKANSAS MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR KILLING 14 MEMBERS OF HIS FAMILY". Deseret News. February 12, 1989. Archived from the original on November 7, 2022. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  72. ^ "Whitmore v. Arkansas 110 S. Ct. 1717, 109 L.Ed.2d 135 (1990)". Capital Defense Journal. 3 (1). November 1, 1990. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved November 23, 2012.
  73. ^ Trager, Lauren (October 25, 2012). "Trail of Terror: 25 Years After The Ronald Gene Simmons Murders Part 1". KARK-4. Archived from the original on January 17, 2013. Retrieved November 23, 2012.
  74. ^ "Mass murderer executed for killing 16 including 14 family members - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved October 12, 2024.
  • Moore, Jim: Rampage - America's Largest Family Mass Murder; The Summit Publishing Group, 1992. ISBN 978-1-56530-002-6
  • Marshall, Bryce Zero at the Bone: Story of Gene Simmons Mass Murder; Pocket Star Books, 1991. ISBN 978-0-671-68511-9
Executions carried out in Arkansas
Preceded by Ronald Gene Simmons
June 25, 1990 		Succeeded by

Ricky Ray Rector

January 24, 1992

Executions carried out in the United States
Preceded by Ronald Gene Simmons – Arkansas
June 25, 1990 		Succeeded by

James Edward Smith – Texas

June 26, 1990