After Spending 48 Years in Prison, the Longest-Serving Wrongly Incarcerated Inmate is Exonerated

Simmons was released from prison July on bond after prosecutors determined that key evidence in the case wasn't revealed to his defense lawyers. In a status hearing held by Palumbo at the time, the judge ruled that the murder judgment and sentence would be vacated and a new trial would be set. 

District Attorney Vicki Zemp Behenna had asked the court to vacate the judgment and sentence in April. "After a thorough review of the case in preparation for an evidentiary hearing, it was discovered that a lineup and certain police reports available to the prosecutors at the time were not turned over to Simmons’ defense team," the Oklahoma County District Attorney's Office stated in a July press release. "While the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma found that this violation did not prejudice Simmons’ defense, DA Behenna believed it did inhibit his ability to receive a fair trial."

Behenna said in a statement: "The role of a prosecutor is to ensure the defendant’s right to a fair trial. That includes providing all evidence the prosecution has to the defense before trial. Unfortunately, that did not happen in Mr. Simmons’ case, so the state confessed the Brady violation and the Judge vacated Mr. Simmons’ judgment and sentence."

After Simmons' conviction was vacated in July, the case was evaluated for retrial. In September, the Oklahoma County District Court Attorney asked that the case against Simmons be dismissed. "When considering whether to pursue the case against Simmons again, the District Attorney determined the state will not be able to meet its burden at trial and prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Simmons was responsible" for the murder he was convicted of, the DA's office stated.

The reasons given by the DA for not seeking a retrial include: There no longer being any physical evidence; the detectives who originally investigated the case being dead or not available; one of the surviving victims having died; and the defense alleging that their alternate suspect was identified in one of the lineups.

On December 30, 1974, just before 9:20 p.m., a pair of armed men went into the Edmond Liquor Store in Oklahoma. Carolyn Sue Rogers, a 30-year-old store clerk, was shot in the head by one of the robbers while answering the store phone, according to The National Registry of Exonerations. The other armed man told a different clerk, Norma Hankins, to open the cash register, and he then took out the money. 

Hankins heard another gunshot while picking up cash that fell on the floor. The men left the shop by the time Hankins stood up. An 18-year-old witness, Belinda Brown, was shot in the head but survived. Rogers was later pronounced dead at a hospital.

Simmons had spent 48 years, one month and 18 days in prison for his wrongful conviction when he released on July 22, 2023.

Simmons — who had said he was in Louisiana at the time of Rogers' 1974 killing and has maintained his innocence ever since — said at a press conference after the December ruling: “It’s a lesson in resilience and tenacity." He added, according to the AP, “Don’t let nobody tell you that it (exoneration) can’t happen, because it really can."