PORTLAND, Ore. – A Portland man who fatally shot his partner in front of her children on the eve of Thanksgiving two years ago has been sentenced to nearly three decades in prison.
Deadly Attack in 2023
On Nov. 22, 2023, prosecutors said Richard D. Simms Jr. turned a handgun on 40-year-old Nicole Davis, shooting her in the back as her children looked on. The murder unfolded the day before Thanksgiving, leaving her family shattered by a crime they described as both senseless and cruel.
Simms and Davis had been in a relationship, but investigators said his feelings soured into violence that ultimately ended her life.
Court Sentencing
On Tuesday, Simms was sentenced to 29 years in state prison after being found guilty of killing Davis. Prosecutors argued for a lengthy sentence, citing the trauma inflicted on Davis’s children, who were forced to witness their mother’s murder.
Family members filled the courtroom, describing how Davis’s death had left an unhealable wound. Her mother, speaking through tears, said the loss had devastated the family:
“It tore up our life,” she told the judge.
Family Devastation
Relatives remembered Davis as a caring mother whose world revolved around her children. They described the violence as not only ending her life but also robbing her children of stability, security, and their most important relationship.
The court heard how Davis’s children continue to struggle with the memories of that night, carrying emotional scars that may never fully heal.
A Sentence That Cannot Heal
While the sentence ensures Simms will spend the next three decades behind bars, Davis’s family said no amount of prison time could undo the harm.
“The pain doesn’t end,” her mother said. “We’re left with the pieces.”
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