Murderer Convicted in 14 More Slayings
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CLARKSVILLE, Ark. — A jury found a man guilty of capital murder Friday in the shooting and strangulation deaths of 14 family members then recommended that he be sentenced to die for the killings.
Johnson County Circuit Judge John S. Patterson accepted the recommendation and set March 16 as the execution date for R. Gene Simmons, 48.
Simmons already had been sentenced to die for the slayings of two people during a shooting rampage on Dec. 28, 1987, in Russellville. After his arrest, authorities searching his home near Dover found the bodies of Simmons’ wife, his seven children, two of the children’s spouses and four grandchildren.
During the trial Friday, Simmons slugged prosecutor John Bynum in front of the jury, sending spectators ducking beneath their seats. He was quickly subdued by officers.
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