“I am pleased that the Court gave the maximum possible sentence in this case,” Attorney General Bailey said. “I want Missouri to be the safest state in the nation for children. As your Attorney General, I will work to send sexual predators to prison—and keep them there.”
Sims Jr. abused the victim for five years, beginning when the victim was 13 years old. He was convicted of two counts of first-degree statutory sodomy, second-degree statutory rape, second-degree statutory sodomy, first-degree kidnapping, sexual exploitation of a minor and forcible sodomy on March 17, 2023 by a Ralls County jury.
Following former prosecutor Talley M. Smith’s promotion to Associate Circuit Judge, the Attorney General’s Office was appointed to assist Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney Nicole Volkert with the prosecution of Sims. The case was tried by assistant attorneys general Paige K. Wheeler and Miranda L. Loesch with assistance from current Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney Nicole D. Volkert.