Jury convicts Timothy Simpkins of attempted murder in school shooting

TARRANT COUNTY (CBSNewsTexas.com) - A jury convicted Timothy Simpkins of attempted capital murder Thursday for the 2021 shooting at Timberview High School in the Mansfield Independent School District. 

The 19-year-old shot and injured fellow students Zacchaeus Selby and Shaniya McNeely, as well as a teacher, Calvin Pettit, who still has a bullet lodged in his chest.

The jury's verdict came after nearly 9 hours of deliberating, which began around 9:15 a.m. They returned their decision just after 6:00 p.m.

Simpkins hung his head slightly as the verdict was read, while family and friends seated in the courtroom began to cry. On the other side of the courtroom, the family and friends of Pettit also began to hug each other and cry.

The guilty verdict means Simpkins could face up to life in prison when the same jury begins the penalty portion of the trial Friday morning. There are no other lesser charges or lesser penalties.

Defense team's closing argument

During closing arguments, Simpkins' attorney Marquetta Clayton described the violent nature of a fight before the shooting where cellphone video shows Simpkins being attacked and stomped in the head by Selby. Clayton argued that Simpkins is not a cold-blooded killer who randomly shot at different classrooms and students, but a bullied student who was trying to protect himself. She also noted that Simpkins had the opportunity to kill Selby, but didn't.

"He [Simpkins] had him [Selby]. And they said there was another bullet in the chamber for him to do it with. If he wanted Zac dead, who was going to stop him?" Clayton argued. "He didn't pull the trigger ... he stood there, he realized the threat was over in this moment. If he wanted to kill Zac, boom—bullet to the head. That's a cold-blooded killer—bullet to the head. That's what capital murder is reserved for—execution-style, bullet to the head. He had one to do it but he didn't."

Clayton wanted to argue self-defense, but the jury was not able to consider self-defense in the case, per Judge Ryan Hill's final instructions. On Wednesday, Tarrant County assistant district attorney Lloyd Whelchel argued self-defense should not apply after surveillance video showed Simpkins with a gun pursuing another student down a school hallway.

Prosecution team's closing argument

During his closing arguments Thursday, Whelchel portrayed Simpkins as a "cold-blooded killer who just got lucky" because "he's a bad shot." He argued that Simpkins woke up with the intent to kill Selby, carrying a gun around school all day and pulling the trigger six times. He also said it should never be okay for someone to bring a gun to school and endanger so many lives.

"This is what she [Clayton] literally just said to you: 'Because he didn't shoot more, he's not guilty. Because he didn't shoot seven times, he's not guilty.' ... One time is too many," Whelchel said. "Do y'all know what the difference is between this charge of attempted capital murder and capital murder? The width of a dime ... That bullet, he [Pettis] was told, is the width of a dime away from his artery and he prays every day it doesn't move."