Arizona Appeals Court Sets Timing Rule for Disability Evaluations in Death Cases: In Phoenix Mother Simmons's Case, Experts Must Wait 20 Days After Records Are Due
In Arizona, the state Court of Appeals ruled last Friday (October 23) that in death-penalty cases, experts conducting intellectual-disability evaluations must wait at least 20 days after the defendant's school, medical, and other records are due before examining the defendant. The court rejected prosecutors' request to have their expert examine the defendant sooner. The timing rule will apply to capital cases across the state.
The ruling arose from the case of Phoenix mother Sophia Simmons. Simmons is charged with first-degree murder and child abuse, and prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Police say her young daughter's body was found in a dumpster near 35th Avenue and Thomas Road on Christmas Eve 2023; she is also accused of trying to clean the scene and tamper with evidence. Simmons scored 53 on an initial IQ screening, which under state law requires further evaluation; Arizona law bars the execution of a person found to have an intellectual disability, and no such determination has been made in her case.
Simmons's trial is scheduled to begin next April. The charges have not been proven in court.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 凤凰城的桑德拉·戴·奥康纳联邦法院大楼（资料图）。图片：Gonzo fan2007，CC BY 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons。 / The Sandra Day O'Connor U.S. Courthouse in Phoenix (file photo). Photo: Gonzo fan2007, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
