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A 62-year-old man’s tragic story has gone viral after it was revealed that he had spent most of his adult life in prison for stealing a paltry $9.
On Saturday, journalist Beth Shelburne shared the story of Willie Simmons Jr. on Twitter in a series of tweets after speaking with the Alabama man about his story. To date, her tweets have been retweeted more than 100,000 times.
READ MORE: Report says racial disparity in prisons narrows across U.S.
Shelburne’s viral thread reveals that in 1982, Simmons was convicted of first degree robbery after wrestling a man to the ground to steal his wallet, which only contained $9, and sentenced to life without parole.
THREAD: Today I talked to Willie Simmons, who has spent the last 38 years in prison for stealing $9. He was convicted of 1st degree robbery & sentenced to life without parole in 1982, prosecuted under Alabama’s habitual offender law because he had 3 prior convictions. 1/12 pic.twitter.com/s5BNK2Ejyd
— Beth Shelburne (@bshelburne) December 22, 2019
“I was just trying to get me a quick fix,” Simmons said admitting that he was high on drugs at the time of the incident.
He was arrested just a few blocks away.
What Shelburne described next was a tragedy:
“He remembers his trial lasting 25 minutes and his appointed attorney calling no witnesses,” she wrote. “Prosecutors did not offer him a plea deal, even though all of his prior offenses were nonviolent. ‘They kept saying we’ll do our best to keep you off the streets for good,’ he said.”
He remembers his trial lasting 25 minutes and his appointed attorney calling no witnesses. Prosecutors did not offer him a plea deal, even though all of his prior offenses were nonviolent. “They kept saying we’ll do our best to keep you off the streets for good,” he said. 6/12
— Beth Shelburne (@bshelburne) December 22, 2019
Simmons was prosecuted under Alabama’s controversial habitual offender law because he had three prior convictions, all of which were nonviolent offenses.
“Mr. Simmons is incarcerated at Holman, one of the most violent prisons in the country,” Shelburne wrote. “He is studying for his GED and “tries to stay away from the wild bunch.” He got sober in prison 18 years ago, despite being surrounded by drugs. “I just talked to God about it,” he said.
Mr. Simmons is incarcerated at Holman, one of the most violent prisons in the country. He is studying for his GED and “tries to stay away from the wild bunch.” He got sober in prison 18 years ago, despite being surrounded by drugs. “I just talked to God about it,” he said. 4/12
— Beth Shelburne (@bshelburne) December 22, 2019
According to her tweets, Shelburne was Simmons’ first visitor since his sister died in 2005 and after filing appeal after appeal, he had been consistently denied. In 2014, lawmakers made it impossible for inmates sentenced to life without parole under the habitual offenders law to appeal their case, but Simmons has hope.
“Yes, I’ve been hoping and praying on it,” he said. “I ain’t giving up.”
Shelburne argues that though Simmons is not innocent, he does not deserve to be thrown away in the prison system without being given a change to redeem himself.
“He has paid for his crimes with his entire adult life, cast away like he wasn’t worth redemption. It sickens me to think about how many other people are warehoused in prison, forgotten,” Shelburne wrote.
Mr. Simmons did not deny his crimes & I am not writing this to argue that he’s innocent. He has paid for his crimes with his entire adult life, cast away like he wasn’t worth redemption. It sickens me to think about how many other people are warehoused in prison, forgotten. 11/12
— Beth Shelburne (@bshelburne) December 22, 2019
She also called for people to question the prison system and its true intentions to deter crime.
“When tough on crime people say everyone in prison deserves to be there, think of Mr. Simmons,” she continued. “We should be ashamed of laws that categorically throw people away in the name of safety. We should question anyone who supports Alabama’s habitual offender law. It needs to go.”
When tough on crime people say everyone in prison deserves to be there, think of Mr. Simmons. We should be ashamed of laws that categorically throw people away in the name of safety. We should question anyone who supports Alabama’s habitual offender law. It needs to go. 12/12
— Beth Shelburne (@bshelburne) December 22, 2019
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