Murderer who walked free 2 years after conviction, now accused of robbing 81-year-old woman

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Some are questioning why a Houston teen was paroled just two years after his conviction on a capital murder charge.

The case was put into focus after Benny Simmons, who turned 18 Wednesday, was arrested on an aggravated robbery charge April 16.

Simmons is accused of ripping car keys from a lanyard around an 81-year-old woman's neck and knocking her to the ground at her Alief apartment complex on April 3.

At the time, he was 17 and had recently been paroled for murder.

"Seriously? How could this have happened?" legal analyst Brian Wice said.

Multiple attorneys Eyewitness News consulted shared Wice's alarm.

"I had never heard of anything quite like this in 45 years as a criminal defense attorney," Wice said.

In September 2022, when Simmons was 15, records show Simmons was convicted of capital murder and aggravated robbery.

Unlike in many capital murder cases, he was tried as a juvenile and not an adult.

"That was really the first domino that fell," Wice said.

Court records in Simmons' pending robbery case show that Judge Leah Shapiro sentenced him to 20 years in the Texas Juvenile Justice Department. That's half of the maximum 40-year sentence for juveniles.

Even so, juveniles convicted of capital murder have to serve at least 10 years of their sentence before they're eligible for parole under state law.

Because juvenile court records are sealed, Eyewitness News doesn't have access to key details like when the murder occurred or how long Simmons was in jail prior to his conviction.

Documents that are publicly available indicate he was released on parole on December 30, two years and three months after his conviction.

Should Simmons be convicted of the robbery, his parole could be revoked, and he would have to serve the remainder of his 20-year sentence.

Bond was initially set at $75,000 but was later rescinded, and Simmons remains in the Harris County Jail.

Multiple calls to Simmons' listed attorney weren't returned.

Eyewitness News has also asked the District Attorney's Office about the case and awaits answers.

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