THE DARK SIDE OF IOWA
Owens Thompson
#1088020
Full Name: Owens Arnez Thompson
DOB: August 15, 1973
Charge: 1st degree murder
County: Polk
City: Des Moines
Current Status: Iowa State Penitentiary
Date of Crime: December 15, 1995
Tentative Discharge Date: Life
Victim: Devon Simmons
DOB: August 15, 1973
Charge: 1st degree murder
County: Polk
City: Des Moines
Current Status: Iowa State Penitentiary
Date of Crime: December 15, 1995
Tentative Discharge Date: Life
Victim: Devon Simmons
Around supper time on December 15, 1995, Heather Simmons left her two-year-old son, Devon, with Owens Thompson while she and Owens’ brother Pat, went out to get pizza. Devon was in good spirits when they left, eager at the prospect of eating pizza for supper. When Heather and Pat returned thirty minutes later, however, Devon was not himself. He appeared to be sick to his stomach. He wanted juice, not pizza, and asked to lie down away from the others. He soon vomited. Heather bathed him and then made a quick trip to the store for 7-Up, thinking this would settle his stomach. Upon her return she became alarmed about the child’s lethargy and his difficulty breathing. She had trouble keeping him awake.
At this point, Heather wanted to call 911 for emergency assistance but Owens refused to let her. He feared medical personnel would suspect child abuse from the multiple bruises on Devon’s little chest. The bruises were the result of Owens’ recent persistent poking as a means of disciplining Devon for failed toilet training. No call for emergency was made.
Around 9 PM, Pat returned and – recognizing the child’s critical status – insisted they take him to the hospital. There, despite the heroic efforts of emergency room physicians and nurses, Devon died around 11 PM. Except for bruising all over his body, particularly remarkable in the chest area, no reason for Devon’s death was immediately apparent.
An autopsy revealed a lacerated liver caused Devon to die from internal bleeding. The laceration was described as significant, appearing to be the product of severe blunt trauma. Doctors testified that the force needed to deliver such a blow would be equivalent to that experienced by a victim in a car crash.
Preliminary police investigation revealed that Owens was alone with Devon during the brief period when his condition changed from normal to gravely ill. Owens first denied any insight into the cause of Devon’s distress, then said that while playing with Devon in the bedroom he had spun him around and accidentally hit the bed. After consulting with his mother, Owens revealed a more sinister explanation: in a fit of anger over Devon yet again soiling his pants, Owens grabbed Devon by the arms and, after twirling him in the air, slammed him against the corner of the bed. Owens insisted he only meant to frighten Devon but accidentally struck him on the wooden part of the bed frame. The jury returned a verdict of guilty in the first-degree.
At this point, Heather wanted to call 911 for emergency assistance but Owens refused to let her. He feared medical personnel would suspect child abuse from the multiple bruises on Devon’s little chest. The bruises were the result of Owens’ recent persistent poking as a means of disciplining Devon for failed toilet training. No call for emergency was made.
Around 9 PM, Pat returned and – recognizing the child’s critical status – insisted they take him to the hospital. There, despite the heroic efforts of emergency room physicians and nurses, Devon died around 11 PM. Except for bruising all over his body, particularly remarkable in the chest area, no reason for Devon’s death was immediately apparent.
An autopsy revealed a lacerated liver caused Devon to die from internal bleeding. The laceration was described as significant, appearing to be the product of severe blunt trauma. Doctors testified that the force needed to deliver such a blow would be equivalent to that experienced by a victim in a car crash.
Preliminary police investigation revealed that Owens was alone with Devon during the brief period when his condition changed from normal to gravely ill. Owens first denied any insight into the cause of Devon’s distress, then said that while playing with Devon in the bedroom he had spun him around and accidentally hit the bed. After consulting with his mother, Owens revealed a more sinister explanation: in a fit of anger over Devon yet again soiling his pants, Owens grabbed Devon by the arms and, after twirling him in the air, slammed him against the corner of the bed. Owens insisted he only meant to frighten Devon but accidentally struck him on the wooden part of the bed frame. The jury returned a verdict of guilty in the first-degree.
Source: FindLaw
