Joe Rudd was shot in the head and nearly killed by Devonere Simmonds on July 27, 2013. The attempted murder of Joe was just one of many crimes committed by Simmonds, a 17-year-old with a long criminal history. During his crime spree, Simmonds murdered two people and attempted to murder one other person. One of his murder victims is Imran Ashgar, whose story is explained on this page.

Though Simmonds was sentenced to life without parole, SB 256 gives him parole eligibility in 2043 and every five years after that, something we believe is incredibly dangerous. And if anyone is in a position to understand Simmonds’ dangerousness, it’s Joe. Joe came face to face with Simmonds several times–the first time was when Simmonds tried to murder him. The second time was when Joe testified against him at trial. In both instances, Joe observed a callous and cold-blooded young man. As Joe explains in his letter to the General Assembly, Simmonds remained calm after shooting Joe in the jaw. When Joe testified at trial, Simmonds laughed.

Simmonds is a danger. And he should never be allowed to add anyone else to his long list of victims.

From Joe, An Attempted Murder Survivor

To whom it may concern:

I am writing to you today to oppose Senate Bill 256, which went into effect on April 12, 2021. This bill has a very high potential of endangering people who have already been victims of violent crimes in your state of Ohio. These victims already live their daily lives remembering the violence they had to go through. A lot of them are not here with us to speak out because they didn’t survive and the ones who are here to speak for them are their families.    

Let me introduce myself, my name is William Joseph Rudd. I go by Joe. I’m not a resident of Ohio but I am a victim of a very violent crime that happened in your state. On July 27, 2013, I was passing through Ohio on my way to Herndon, VA. I stopped at the London Ohio Travel Centers of America (TA) truck stop on I-70 between Columbus and Dayton at 4:30 AM. When I was returning to my car after being inside the truck stop, two teens approached me from behind. I had walked by them, but they were sitting down and appeared to be harmless. I did not see or hear them approach me from behind until I felt a tap to the back of my head. At this moment I knew I was in trouble, so I turned to face them and realized it was a gun that was against my head. With the gun on my face, no words were said. The 17-year-old pulled the trigger. The bullet struck my left jawbone and blew it apart. The bullet then turned into fragments and continued to bounce around in my face and neck until it stopped after hitting my C1 vertebra. The bullet was 1/8 of an inch from striking my vertebral artery and to this day it is still there. As I was laying on the ground looking up, the 17-year-old, Devonere Simmonds, was looking down at me pointing his pistol at my head. It’s an image that is burnt into my memory and the one thing that I will never forget is how calm he was. This is a person who just shot someone at point-blank and he’s not even breaking a sweat. As I lay there, my jaw blown apart, Simmonds demanded my car keys. After throwing my keys I got up and ran back into the building. I truly believe I would not be here today writing this to you if I hadn’t gotten up and ran for my life. Knowing what I know now and how they killed Imran Ashgar I’m sure they would have put a second bullet in my head if I just laid there.

I spent almost a month in Grant Medical Center after having my jaw replaced with my floating rib. I was on a feeding tube along with a tracheostomy tube after my surgery due to having my mouth wired shut. I also had a cervical collar in place because my C1 was damaged. After that month I was sent home to VA where I was on bed rest for roughly 4 months and continued to battle weight loss and infection in my face. To this day I still battle jaw pain and nerve damage in my face and neck. For the last 8 years, I’ve battled dental problems and as of 3 weeks ago I finally removed all my remaining teeth due to this incident. For 5 years I endured migraines due to the pain caused by the nerve damage. I now have medication that helps with that. The one thing that is the hardest to handle is the PTSD. Everywhere I go, night or day, if I see a group of young adults, 2 or more I start to get a little nervous and my focus is on them to assure they are not dangerous to me or my family. 

Roughly a year after the incident I sat in court and testified against Devonere Simmonds and Nathaniel Brunner. I had the stand all to myself for what seemed like an hour to tell my whole story to the jury. All they could do was sit and listen; everything from that day in July 2013 was caught on tape. I remember thinking that I was the one who ended all of this and would be the one who would put them away forever. Brunner and Simmonds just sat there and smiled and chuckled at me, something I will never forget. In the end, I told the judge that I believed that they needed to spend the rest of their lives in prison, and he agreed with me.  Brunner, who was 18 when he attacked me, was sentenced to life with parole eligibility in 78 years.  Simmonds was sentenced to life without parole plus 48 years for the many offenses he committed during his crime spree, which included aggravated robbery, attempted murder, murder, and aggravated murder. But because of SB 256, Simmonds will now be eligible for parole in 2043 and every 5 years after that. 

I feel that if Simmonds or Brunner ever get out, they may retaliate against me and my family, as I survived their attack and testified against them. I put the nail in the coffin for them with my testimony and now with SB 256, Simmonds has a chance to get out in my lifetime.  

With SB 256 in effect, the Ohio legislature is advocating for criminals and ignoring the wellbeing of the victims. As a victim in your state of Ohio, I already wake up every day and remember the crime that forever changed my life, and it stresses me out that this bill can potentially release Simmonds and others like him. Devonere Simmonds should not be released back into society. How about the victims who still live in your state and nearby? They must be horrified. In fact, I have met other victims who are impacted by SB 256 and I know that they are, in fact, scared of what could happen to them, should their victimizers be released. 

I am asking you to protect us victims by amending or repealing SB 256.