Key Takeaways
- Ronald Gene Simmons meticulously planned and executed the annihilation of his family in December 1987.
- His crimes stemmed from extreme entitlement and a desire for control, escalating after his daughter's marriage.
- Simmons initiated an incestuous relationship with his daughter, Sheila, leading to two pregnancies.
- The murder spree began with his immediate family, followed by extended family members and former colleagues.
- Simmons sought and received the death penalty, executed in June 1988 by Governor Bill Clinton's warrant.
Deep Dive
- Ronald Gene Simmons's planned murders are contrasted with other family annihilators like John List and Chris Watts.
- His motivations were tied to entitlement, not financial ruin or mental breakdown, distinguishing him from other known cases.
- The hosts noted that many historical family annihilation cases likely go unreported.
- Ronald Gene Simmons initiated an incestuous relationship with his 16-year-old daughter, Sheila, in 1980.
- By March 1981, Sheila was pregnant with Simmons's child; his wife Becky was informed.
- Simmons's eldest son, Gene Jr., anonymously alerted social services in New Mexico, leading to Sheila's admission of forced sexual relations.
- Simmons fled New Mexico with his family in 1981 to avoid an arrest warrant after a local official was sentenced for child sex abuse.
- Ronald Gene Simmons moved his family to Ward, Arkansas, in 1981, maintaining extreme paranoia and strict rules.
- His daughter Sheila began attending business school and forming friendships, leading her to recognize the abnormality of her relationship with her father.
- The incestuous relationship continued, resulting in a second pregnancy in late 1981, which Simmons forced Sheila to terminate.
- Following the abortion, Sheila confided in a new friend, Dennis McNulty, about the abuse.
- Ronald Gene Simmons purchased Mockingbird Hill, a 13-acre property where his family lived in a dilapidated double-wide mobile home lacking plumbing.
- The outhouses the children built on Mockingbird Hill later served as a mass grave for the family.
- Simmons took low-skilled jobs, including an industrial cleaner and mini-mart cashier, but by 1984, his mindset shifted towards mass murder.
- After his daughter Sheila's marriage in 1984, Simmons retreated into isolation, spending hours in a locked room viewing explicit photos of her.
- By 1987, Ronald Gene Simmons's rage intensified, leading him to compile a secret list of targets for annihilation.
- His family, including his wife Becky, grew estranged and actively resisted his manipulative and abusive advances.
- Simmons made violent threats, barred his son-in-law Dennis from his property, and fired a gun during an argument.
- In November 1987, Simmons became reclusive, noting Christmas Day as the date for his revenge to a bread delivery man.
- On December 18, 1987, Ronald Gene Simmons quit his job, having decided to murder his entire family.
- The killings began on December 22, 1987, targeting his eldest son, Gene Jr., whom he blamed for family alienation.
- Simmons murdered his wife Becky and Gene Jr. with a .22-caliber pistol and pipe, then strangled his 3-year-old granddaughter.
- He retrieved his remaining four school-aged children, then murdered each one by strangulation with fishing line, including 17-year-old Loretta.
- Bodies were disposed of in outhouse pits, and Simmons staged a break-in at the family home.
- On December 23rd, Ronald Gene Simmons burned the bodies of his initial victims and spent Christmas Eve and Day blaming his family.
- On December 26th, his son Billy, Billy's wife, and their child arrived at Mockingbird Hill despite days of no contact.
- Simmons murdered Billy with two shots to the head, and Billy's wife with seven shots to the head and neck.
- Later that day, Simmons killed his daughter Sheila, her boyfriend Dennis, and his 6-year-old daughter and 1-year-old son by strangulation and drowning.
- On December 27th, Ronald Gene Simmons listed former colleagues and his ex-boss Rusty Taylor as future targets.
- On December 28th, wearing a white cowboy hat, Simmons fatally shot Kathy Kendrick four times at her law firm.
- He then shot Rusty Taylor and employee J.D. Schaffin at Taylor Oil Company; Taylor survived due to a 'Queen Elizabeth coronation plate'.
- At a mini-mart, Simmons shot David Sawyer and Roberta; both survived. He was arrested without incident at 11 a.m., 45 minutes after his spree began.
- Ronald Gene Simmons's defense attempted to blame Dennis McNulty during the trial, referencing a 'fabricated Asian McNulty family'.
- Simmons attacked the prosecutor, describing it as a 'mitigation neutralizing maneuver' to secure the death penalty.
- He did not appeal his sentence, and then-Governor Bill Clinton signed the warrant for his execution.
- Simmons was executed by lethal injection on June 27, 1988, approximately one year and four months after his conviction.