Mother Accused of Murdering Daughter, 8, and Tossing Her Body in Dumpster May Avoid Execution Because She Has an IQ of 53

A Phoenix mother who has been accused of murdering her eight-year-old daughter may avoid the death penalty due to her IQ score of 53.

Sophia Simmons, a Maricopa County resident, was investigated by Phoenix Police Department detectives in Arizona after an anonymous tip led officers to find little Dior Echoles’s body tossed into a dumpster near Thomas Road in December 2023.

Sophia Simmons

Authorities reported they secured a search warrant for Simmons’s house and found evidence of someone attempting to clean a crime scene on December 25, 2023.

She was then arrested and charged with felonies of first-degree murder and child abuse. Simmons was also accused of tampering with physical evidence.

According to an Arizona Court of Appeal document, the state of Arizona is seeking the death penalty if Simmons is found guilty of her charges.

However, execution may be barred if the state finds that Simmons is intellectually disabled, after an examination by a psychological expert determined that she has an IQ score of 53.

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Judge David B Gass noted in his court opinion that Arizona law bars the execution of anyone found to have an intellectual disability.

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According to ABC 15 News, court documents said the young girl’s body appeared to have multiple injuries to her legs, arms and torso.

Investigators reported that some of her wounds were in different stages of healing and that she had scars from other prior injuries.

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