October 29, 2025 • 30 mins
Discover the shocking true crime case of Holly Simmons, a kind-hearted Tennessee mother brutally murdered in Murfreesboro in June 2023 by her own husband, Greg Simmons, who killed her so he could marry his teenage stepdaughter, Delta Simmons. This chilling story unfolds with betrayals, secret affairs, and a twisted motive involving lies, manipulation, and a shocking pregnancy twist. Hear how detectives Mark Phillips and Sandra Ortega uncovered the murder, investigated suspects, and brought justice through a gripping trial in March 2025.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is true Crime case Files, where we examined some
of the most shocking and disturbing crimes in recent history.
Today's case takes us to Murfreesboro, Tennessee. In June of
twenty twenty three, this quiet suburban town in Middle Tennessee,
better known for college football games in farmers' markets, became
the site of one of the most twisted domestic crimes
in memory. It is the story of a husband who
(00:22):
murdered his wife so he could marry his teenage stepdaughter.
The victim was Holly Simmons, aged thirty nine, a woman
remembered in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, as a helper, a giver, and
someone who always thought about others before herself. In June
of twenty twenty three, Holly was living in a quiet
suburban neighborhood not far from Middle Tennessee State University. The
(00:44):
streets there were lined with modest houses, most with trim
blonds and small gardens. Family spent weekends at farmers' markets
or cheering for the Blu Raiders football team. Holly's life
fit neatly into that rhythm, but her daily focus was
not on sports or shopping. Her heart belonged to the
people who had less. Holly had recently remarried after leaving
her first husband, and she was trying to settle into
(01:06):
her new marriage with Greg Simmons. But the part of
her life she poured the most energy into us her
food pantry. She founded it herself, naming its second Harvest Souls.
The pantry operated out of a converted church basement, where
shelves were stocked with canned beans, rice, pasta, and peanut butter,
foods meant to last through tough weeks. On weekday mornings,
(01:27):
Holly could be found there in jeans and a T shirt,
sorting donations, calling local grocery stores, or greeting families who
stopped by for help. Friends described her as pure kindness
in human form. Neighbors remembered that if food was left
over at the end of the day, Holly would pack
it up and hand it out to neighborhood kids walking
home from school outside the pantry. Holly loved the small
(01:50):
joys of life. She tended to a backyard garden where
she grew tomatoes, peppers, and herbs. Every June, her tomato
plants filled her Facebook page. She liked to post photos
of the ripening fruit, adding little notes about how tall
the vines had gotten. She also kept a handwritten gratitude journal,
something she updated each evening before bed. Friend who saw
(02:10):
it said her entries were often about very simple things.
The tomatoes looked strong, or a child smiled when I
gave him cookies. Family meant everything to Holly. She was
the mother of eighteen year old Delta, who had just
graduated from high school that spring. Like many parents of teenagers,
Holly tried to balance love and discipline. She wanted to
support Delta's dreams, talking with her about college work or
(02:33):
even a YouTube channel, but she also wanted her daughter
to make responsible choices. Friend said the relationship was sometimes strained,
but Holly never stopped bragging about Delta's milestones. She even
shared graduation photos on Facebook, writing that she was so
proud of my girl. In the days before her death,
Holly's focus was on the summer ahead. She talked about
(02:53):
expanding her pantry into a nonprofit that could partner with
local churches. She had called a friend about filing pips
and dreamed of applying for small grants. She had hope, energy,
and plans for the future to those who knew her.
She seemed content, always smiling, and full of ideas, But
behind the quiet walls of her home, danger was already
moving closer in ways she could not have imagined. On
(03:17):
the warm summer morning of June seventeenth, twenty twenty three,
Murfreesboro was waking up to a typical Saturday. The sky
was bright, the air already sticky with Tennessee humidity, and
the sounds of lawn mowers buzzed across the neighborhood. At
around nine o'clock, a m. Holly Simmons's neighbor, Angela Martin,
walked across the street to Holly's house. Angela, who was
(03:38):
in her mid forties and active in her church, had
planned to pick up donated food from Holly for a
week in community event. Angela had known Holly for years
through the food pantry. She admired Holly's generosity and often
helped her load boxes of canned goods. That morning, Angela
expected Holly to be bustling around, maybe with coffee in hand,
ready to hand over bags of pasta and rice, But
(04:00):
when she knocked on the front door, no one answered.
Angela knocked again, calling Holly's name, still silence growing uneasy,
Angela walked around to the back. The sliding door was unlocked,
something Holly often did when she expected visitors from the pantry.
Angela stepped inside. The house felt strangely quiet. A half
(04:20):
drum mug of tea sat on the kitchen counter, and
the faint sound of running water came from upstairs. Angela
climbed the staircase, her heart beating faster with each step.
When she reached the bathroom, the door was open. That
was when she saw Holly. Her body was in the bathroom,
the water still half filled, and cloudy ruses marked her
face and arms. Her head was tilted unnaturally, and she
(04:42):
wasn't moving. At first, Angela thought Holly might have slipped.
Bathrooms can be dangerous, especially with wet tile floors, but
something about the scene felt wrong. The bruises looked severe,
and the way Holly's body was positioned did not sing
like a simple fall. Angela later told investigators she frozen place,
unable to process what she was seeing. Her hands shook
(05:04):
as she pulled out her phone. Her voice broke when
she dialed nine one one, telling the dispatcher she's gone.
She's not breathing. She gave Holly's address quickly, almost stumbling
over the numbers. The dispatcher instructed her to stay calm
and wait for first responders. Angela backed away from the bathroom,
pacing the hallway. She felt fear, disbelief, and grief all
(05:25):
at once. This was her friend, the woman who ran
a food pantry, who always had a smile and a
bag of groceries ready for anyone in need. Angela could
not understand how Holly, full of plans and energy just
days earlier, was now lifeless in her own home. That morning,
the quiet suburban street, usually filled with the sounds of
children playing and neighbors watering their gardens, became the setting
(05:47):
of a tragedy that would soon shock the entire community.
When Angela Martin's nine one one call came in at
nine seven am on June seventeen, twenty twenty three, the
Murfreesboro Police Department to day dispatch patrol cars and detectives
right away. On a Saturday morning when most of the
town was headed to farmers' markets or mowing their lawns.
(06:07):
Police cruisers sped down the quiet suburban street with lights flashing.
Detectives Mark Phillips and Sandra Ortega were assigned to lead
the investigation. Phillips, in his early fifties, was known around
the department for his calm, methodical approach. He had worked
homicides for more than two decades and rarely raised his voice. Ortega,
in her forties, was his opposite, direct, outspoken, and quick
(06:30):
to notice details others missed. Together, they made a strong team.
When they entered the house, officers had already cleared the downstairs.
The kitchen counter still held a half finished cup of
tea and an open notebook. Signs of an ordinary morning interrupted,
but as Phillips and Ortega climbed the stairs, they could
smell a mix of water, iron, and something darker, the
(06:52):
metallic tang of blood. The upstairs bathroom revealed a grim scene.
Holly Simmons's body was lying naked beside the back. She
had been beaten with bruises and cuts across her face
and head. The tub itself still held water splashed onto
the tile floor. It was clear someone had tried to
make the death look like a simple accident, a slip
(07:14):
and fall in the bathroom, but the staging was sloppy,
and both detectives saw through it. Immediately. Phillips crouched near
the tub, noting that Holly's injuries didn't line up with
the fall. The wounds were too deep, the pattern too
deliberate or Tiga, standing near the doorway, pointed out blood
spatter on the wall above the sink, far from where
a fall would have caused impact. This isn't an accident,
(07:36):
she said, this is violence. Their search uncovered a hammer
partially hidden under a damp towel in the corner of
the bathroom. The hammer had blood on its head and
strands of hair stuck to it. Forensics later confirmed it
was the murder weapon. Holly had been struck multiple times
with the hammer before being drowned in her own bathtom
Investigators began processing the scene step by step. Crime scene
(07:59):
technicians photographed everything from the placement of the body to
the droplets of water on the tile. They dusted for
fingerprints on the hammer, the sink, and the bathroom door.
Swams were taken from under Holly's fingernails, where she appeared
to have struggled. The medical examiner arrived to prepare the
body for transport, noting the combination of blunt forced trauma
and drowning as the likely cause of death. Outside, yellow
(08:22):
tapes stretched across the front yard, blocking off curious neighbors
who had gathered on sidewalks. Parents held their children close,
whispering as they watched uniformed officers carry evidence bags to
waiting cars. By late afternoon, the ruse of an accidental
fall had been completely disproven. Detectives Phillips and Ortega announced
that Holly Simmons death was officially being investigated as a homicide.
(08:45):
What had begun as a neighbour's morning visit to pick
up food donations was now a murder case that would
shake Murphrey's Burrow to its core. The first person detectives
turned their attention to his Delta Simmons, Hally's only child.
Delta had just turned eighteen years old a few weeks earlier,
and she had celebrated her high school graduation in late
May of twenty twenty three with her classmates at Segull
(09:05):
High School in Murfreesboro. Friends remembered her wearing a short,
glittery dress to the senior banquet and posting selfies online
with captions about finally being free. Delta was in a
season of transition. She was working part time at a
tanning salon in a local strip mall, where she spent
long hours at the front desk, scheduling appointments, cleaning tanning beds,
(09:26):
and chatting with regular customers. Coworkers later described her as
flashy and dramatic, often arriving to work with long false eyelashes,
acrylic nails, and full make up, even for a morning shift.
She told friends she wanted to start a YouTube channel
about make up tutorials, hoping to build an audience and
maybe one day make a living online. Her relationship with
(09:47):
her mother, however, was strained. Holly was proud of her daughter,
but wanted her to focus on school or steady work.
She encouraged Delta to consider community college or training programs. Delta,
who dreamed of internet fame, saw her mother is out
of touch. According to friends, she sometimes called Holly old
fashioned dumb bleat when they argued, mocking Holly's simple lifestyle
(10:08):
and her devotion to the food pantry. Because she lived
in the house and was the closest person to Holly,
Delta immediately became a person of interest. Detectives Mark Phillips
and Sandra Ortega brought her in for questioning at the
police station the afternoon of June seventeen. From the start,
Delta's behavior stood out. Sitting across from the detectives in
a small interview room, she slouched in her chair and
(10:30):
kept glancing at her phone, which police had allowed her
to keep briefly before collecting it as evidence. When Phillips
asked her to describe the last time she saw her
mother alive, Delta sighed loudly and rolled her eyes. Her
answers were short, often no more than a sentence or two.
Ortiga pressed her about her relationship with Holly. Delta admitted
they argued often, especially about her future money and her
(10:53):
mother's annoying rules. At one point, she shrugged and muttered
that Holly didn't get her and wasn't going to stop now.
Two investigators her lack of visible grief was unsettling. Most teenagers,
even those who fought with their parents, would show some
emotion after losing them. Delta, in contrast, seemed cold and detached.
Detectives considered resentment as a possible motive. Holly's rules and
(11:17):
restrictions could have pushed Delta to lash out, but when
pressed harder, Delta denied any involvement She insisted she had
nothing to do with her mother's death and seemed irritated
that detectives were even asking. Her tone was flat at times,
almost bored, as if she wanted the interview to be
over quickly. Police noted her odd behavior in their reports,
(11:37):
but they lacked direct evidence linking her to the crime.
There were no signs of a struggle in her room,
no blood on her belongings, and no messages on her
phone that suggested planning or knowledge of the murder. For
the moment, Delta remained on their radar, but investigators knew
they would need to keep looking elsewhere. Her detachment raised suspicion,
but suspicion alone was not enough to charge her. After
(12:01):
speaking with Delta, detectives quickly turned their attention to Greg Simmons,
Holly's husband. Gregg was forty two years old and had
married Holly less than two years earlier. He worked as
a tow truck driver for a local company off Broad Street,
where he was often seen hauling broken down cars in
and out of the shop around town. Greg had a
mixed reputation. Some people found him funny and outgoing, with
(12:23):
a booming laugh that could fill a room. Others, especially
those who had clashed with him, described him miss charming
until he wasn't. When his mood turned, Greg could be harsh,
snapping at people without warning. In June of twenty twenty three,
Greg was known to spend blond nights at works, sometimes
hanging around gas stations after a tow drinking sodas and
swapping stories with other drivers. He liked to project himself
(12:46):
as a family man, telling customers about his wife Holly
and his step daughter Delta, but investigators soon learned that
his private life looked very different from the picture he
painted in public. On the morning of June seventeen, when
Holly's body was discovered, Greg told detectives he had been
working a shift and couldn't have been home, But when
police checked his work logs and GPS records from his truck,
(13:08):
the timeline didn't add up. His story kept shifting, first
claiming he had been on the road, then later saying
he had stopped for breakfast. The more he spoke, the
more tangled his alibi became. Detectives Phillips and Ortega noticed
Gregg's temper during questioning. At first, he tried to appear calm,
leaning back in his chair and insisting he loved Holly.
(13:28):
But as they pressed him, his voice grew louder and
his answers sharper. He pounded his fist on the table
at one point, shouting I didn't hurt her. His behavior
only made the investigators more certain that he was hiding something.
The turning point came when police obtained Greg's phone. Forensic
specialists calmed through his text messages, and what they found
changed the entire direction of the case. Hidden among everyday
(13:52):
conversations about work and bills were hundreds of messages between
Greg and Delta, his teenage stepdaughter. The messages revealed not
only an inappropriate relationship, but also a disturbing plan. Greg
had been carrying on an affair with Delta, promising her
that they would soon be together without Holly in the way.
One message sent in early June read that he would
(14:13):
make her his June bride. Investigators were stunned. It was
evidence that pointed to motive. Greg wanted Holly gone so
he could marry Delta. When confronted with the texts, Gregg's
reaction was telling. At first, he denied everything, claiming the
messages were jokes or taken out of context, But as
detectives read the words back to him, his face turned
(14:33):
red and his answers stumbled. He went from shouting to sulking,
his confidence slipping away. The affair explained Delta's detached behavior
earlier that day and revealed the depth of Gregg's betrayal. Holly,
the woman who built her life around kindness and community,
had been living under the same roof as a husband
plotting against her with her own daughter. By the end
(14:54):
of June seventeen, police knew Greg Simmons had both the
motive and the opportunity. The picture of holly death was
no longer an accident, no longer a mystery. It was
a crime driven by obsession, deceit, and a man's desire
to control the future at any cost. By late June
twenty twenty three, Murfreesboro was buzzing with gossip about the
Simmons case. Coffee shops along Main Street were packed with
(15:17):
people whispering about what might have happened inside Hollby's house.
The news traveled fast through Facebook groups, talk clips, and
text chains. Everyone had a theory. But on June twenty one,
twenty twenty three, during a week of muggy ninety degree
afternoons and thunderstorms rolling across Rutherford County. The investigation took
a shocking turn that afternoon, detectives brought Delta Simmons, Holly's
(15:41):
only daughter, back in for another round of questioning. She
had graduated high school just weeks before and was spending
most of her time scrolling TikTok, working shortships at the
tanning salon, and hanging out with friends at Sonic. She
showed up to the police station wearing oversized lashes, tight jeans,
and a crop top, her phone in her hand. Even
as she sat across from investigators, Delta had already unsettled
(16:05):
police with her flat, detached responses about her mother's death. Now,
as she tapped her nails on the table, she casually
dropped a bombshell. She was pregnant. At first, Delta told
detectives that Greg, her forty two year old stepfather, was
the father of the baby. She admitted they had been
secretly involved for months and insisted Greg had promised to
leave Holly so they could build the life together. For investigators,
(16:28):
the confession explained Greg's motive in a new and horrifying light.
If Delta was pregnant with Gregg's child. The murder suddenly
looked like a desperate attempt to clear the path for
a future with her, but detectives weren't about to take
her word at face value. Within hours, they ordered DNA testing.
The results stunned everyone. Greg was not the father. The
baby belonged to Dylan Ross, Delta's ex boyfriend from high school.
(16:52):
Dylan was nineteen, a former baseball player who had dated
Delta on and off throughout senior year. Friends described him
as quiet and polite, the kind of kid who worked
part time at Kroger and drove an old Ford pickup.
By June, he and Delta had broken up, but their
connection clearly hadn't ended. The DNA test proved it Dylan,
not Greg, was the father. This revelation sent shockwaves through
(17:15):
the case. Greg had killed Holly under the false belief
that Delta was carrying his child. He had risked everything,
his marriage, his freedom, and Holly's life for a fantasy
that wasn't even real. Detectives later described the discovery as
chilling because it showed just how far Greg's delusion had gone.
When investigators confronted Delta with the results. Her reaction was
(17:37):
once again strangely detached. She shrugged, fiddled with her phone,
and said Dylan was probably a better dad anyway. The
lack of emotion disturbed detectives, who noted in their reports
that she never once cried for her mother during questioning.
Even as the evidence mounted, the story hit local news
outlets The next morning. Headlines on the Murphresboro Post and
(17:59):
national TV stations shouted fragmancy twist in Simmons murder case
and baby not husband's new shocker in Holly Simmons homicide.
On Facebook. Neighbours flooded commet sections with disbelief and anger.
What had started as a suspected accident in a bathroom
had unraveled into one of the most disturbing scandals the
town had seen in years. Greg Simmons had murdered his wife,
(18:22):
blinded by lies, manipulation, and the false hope of a
child who was never his. As the investigation into Holly
Simmons's death deepened in late June twenty twenty three, detectives
shifted their focus back to Dylan Ross, Delta's nineteen year
old ex boyfriend. On paper, Dylan looked like a strong suspect.
He was young, hot headed, and had a history of
(18:44):
public fights with Delta, especially after their breakup. His name
had already circulated among neighbors on Facebook, with some pointing
to his temper as a possible clue. Dylan had grown
up in Murfreesborough, the kind of teenager people often described
as having a bad boy streak. He had dropped out
of high school of his junior year and bounced between jobs,
most recently stocking shells at Walmart off old Fort Parkway.
(19:07):
In his free time, he hung around car meet ups
in the Target parking lot, blasting loud rap music and
showing off his souped up Honda Civic with a custom muffler.
His Instagram page was filled with photos of burnouts, puddies,
and captions about loyalty and revenge. His relationship with Delta
had been rocky from the stark. Friends said they were
on again, off again for nearly two years, always breaking
(19:28):
up and making up in dramatic fashion. Their arguments were
loud in public, sometimes spilling into the high school cafeteria
or even the stands at football games. One neighbor recalled
seeing them yelling at each other in Holly's driveway just
weeks before the murder. The relationship finally ended when Dylan
learned Delta had cheated with her stepfather, Greg Simmons. To Dylan,
the betrayal was more than humiliating, it was devastating. Friends
(19:53):
remembered him pacing outside his car, red faced, telling anyone
who would listen that he would never forgive her. Because
of this history, detectives couldn't ignore him. On June twenty three,
twenty twenty three, just days after the pregnancy twist made headlines,
police brought Dylan in for questioning at the Murphrey's Brow station.
He wore a black coodie despite the sticky summer heat,
(20:15):
his hands shoved deep into the pockets. His first words
to detectives were blunt, I didn't kill nobody. During hours
of questioning, Dylan was surprisingly cooperative. He admitted he was
furious at Delta for cheating on him, especially with Greg,
but he insisted he had nothing to do with Holly's death.
He leaned back in his chair, capping his foot nervously,
(20:36):
but he answered every question. Detectives pressed him hard, pointing
out his past fights with Delta and the rumors swirling
around town. Dylan didn't deny being jealous. He even admitted
he once thought about teaching Great a lesson, but when
it came to the murder, he swore on his life
he wasn't involved. Evidence supported his claim. DNA tests from
(20:56):
the bathroom and hammer came back negative for Dylan. His
phone wrecked showed he was at home the night Holly died,
playing Xbox with two friends who later confirmed his alibi.
There was no trace linking him to the crime scene.
When detectives told him he was cleared, Dylan reportedly let
out a frustrated laugh. I may be dumber than a
newborn calf, he said, but not a bleeping killer. Relieved
(21:19):
but still bitter, Dylan left the station shaking his head.
Outside the Tennessee heap pressed down on the pavement as
he climbed into his civic and sped off his muffler,
growling for investigators, Dylan was no longer a suspect. The
spotlight returned fully to Greg Simmons and the chilling choices
he had already made. By the final week of June
twenty twenty three, detectives in Murfreesboro had pieced together the
(21:43):
grim truth the murderer was Greg Simmons, forty two years old,
Holly's husband of barely two years. The man neighbors once
described as charming until he wasn't, had carried out a
crime that shocked even seasoned investigators. Gregg's plan was both
brutal and bizarre. Evidence showed he had struck Holly in
the head multiple times with a hammer, leaving deep bruises
(22:04):
and lacerations. After she was incapacitated, he dragged her to
the bathroom, filled the tub, and held her under the
water until she drowned. Then, in a clumsy attempt at deception,
he staged the scene to look like Holly had slipped
and fallen in the bathroom, but detectives quickly saw through
the ruse. The bruises were too severe, the blood spattered
too telling, and the hammer hidden under a towel sealed
(22:27):
the conclusion. His motive, investigators learned, was even more disturbing
than the method. Gregg killed Holly so he could marry Delta,
his teenage stepdaughter, whom he called his true soulmate. In
his mind, Holly had become nothing more than an obstacle
to his fantasy future. On Greg's cell phone, detectives uncovered
disturbing internet searches. Phrases like step daughter marriage, law's Tennessee
(22:51):
and how to prove bathtub drowning accident painted a chilling
picture of premeditation. On June twenty five, twenty twenty three,
the decision was made. Detectives Mark Phillips and Sandra Ortega,
who had led the investigation from the start, moved in
to make the arrest. Grape was found at his work place,
a small tow yard on the edge of town near
the interstate. It was a sweltering Sunday afternoon, but kind
(23:14):
where the air shimmered off the asshle workers stood by
in disbelief as unmarked police cars rolled in. When approached,
Gregg didn't run or resist. Instead, he froze, his hands,
dropping to his sides as officers closed in. Witnesses later
said he looked like the life drained out of him.
As handcuffs clicked around his wrists, Gregg muttered quietly, she
(23:35):
was in the way Holly, stood in the way of happiness.
The arrest sent ripples of shock through Murfreesboro, a city
more accustomed to college football games and Saturday farmers markets
than grisly domestic crimes. For Holly's friend of the food pantry,
the news was both a relief and a heartbreak. Relief
that her killer had been caught, but heartbreak that the
(23:55):
man she had trusted most in her second chance at
marriage was the one who ended her life. Delta, meanwhile,
was left in tears when she learned of Gregg's confession.
Investigators noted her strange detachment in earlier interviews, but in
this moment, the reality sank in. The man she believed
would give her freedom and love had destroyed her family
and left her with nothing but shame and confusion. For
(24:17):
the community, Gregg's arrest was the turning point. The quiet
suburban neighborhood where Holly once handed out tomatoes from her
garden and snacks to children, now carried the memory of
a crime that would never be forgotten. The murder trial
of Greg Simmons opened in March twenty twenty five, nearly
two years after Holly's death. By then, Murfreesboro had moved
(24:37):
on to everyday rhythms, spring baseball at the high school,
traffic jams along Olford Parkway, and students preparing for college
finals at Middle Tennessee State University, but inside the Rutherford
County Courthouse, all eyes were on a case that had
never faded from memory. The lead prosecutor was Janet Collins
forty six, a determined attorney known across Tennessee for her
(25:00):
her sharp cross examinations and steady composure. In her opening statement,
Collins told jurors that Gregg's crime was not an accident
or a sudden outburst, but a carefully planned killing. She
walked them through the disturbing internet searches found on Greg's fund, stepdaughter,
marriage law's Tennessee and how to prove bathtub drowning accident.
(25:20):
Heatch phrase, she argued, showed that Gray had mapped out
exactly how he would rid himself of Holly to pursue
an illegal and twisted fantasy with her daughter. The defense attorney,
Michael Reeves, aged fifty five, tried to soften Greg's actions. Reeves,
to courtroom bedteran known for his calm voice and tailored suits,
argued that Greg acted in a moment of passion. He
(25:41):
claimed Greg was trapped in an unhappy marriage and simply snapped.
He pleaded for leniency, suggesting Greg should not spend the
rest of his life behind bars. The most dramatic moment
of the trial came when Delta Simmons, now twenty, took
the stand. Dressed in a plain blouse and speaking quietly,
she testified against Grace. She told the jury how he
(26:01):
had manipulated her, filling her head with promises of luxury trips,
freedom from rules, and a real wedding once Holly was gone.
She admitted she once believed him, but by the time
of the murder she had realized how dangerous he was.
Many in the courtroom wept as she recounted the betrayal,
her voice shaking but clear. Holly's family filled the benches,
holding hands and passing tissues. Friends from the food pantry
(26:24):
came as well, wearing pins shaped like small tomatoes to
honor Holly's love of gardening. The emotional weight in the
courtroom was heavy, each testimony a reminder of the life
greg had taken. After a week of testimony, the jury
reached a unanimous verdict guilty of first eary murder. Gregg
Simmons was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility
of parole. He showed little emotion as the sentence was read,
(26:47):
staring straight ahead, his jaw tight. For Holly's family, the
verdict brought a measure of relief, though the pain was
far from gone. They told reporters afterward that justice had
been served, but no the sentence could bring back the
woman they described as pure kindness in human form. The
trial's outcome closed one chapter of the case, but for
(27:08):
those who loved Holly, the loss remained raw, a wound
time alone could not heal. By March of twenty twenty five,
the Simmons case had largely receded from the front pages,
but its impact remained deep. In Murfreesboro, greg Simmons, now
officially convicted of first degree murder, had been transferred to
a maximum security prison in Tennessee. Reports from correctional officers
(27:31):
indicated that he was withdrawn, bitter, and largely kept to
himself in the prison yard. He reportedly avoided other inmates
and spent his time reading legal documents and newspapers, his
plans for a life with Delta having banished entirely, Delta Simmons,
now twenty, moved in with relatives immediately after the trial.
She gave birth to her son, fathered by her ex boyfriend,
(27:53):
Dylan Ross. Whose life had quietly returned to normal after
being cleared of any wrongdoing. Delta focused on building her life,
taking college courses online, and learning to navigate motherhood under
the watchful eyes of her family. She has since cut
all contact with Greg, determined to put the past behind her.
Neighbors and friends said she was reserved, but seemed determined
(28:14):
to create a safe and stable environment for her child,
often posting subvile updates about daily life on social media
without drawing attention to the past. Dylan returned to work
at Walmart, stocking shells and keeping a low profile in
the small Tennessee town. Friends described him as quieter than before,
more reflective, and focused on providing support to Delta and
(28:34):
the baby. Though the couple had been through a public scandal,
Dylan and Delta worked to ensure the child had a
family life untouched by the chaos of the murder case.
The detectives who led the investigation continued their work in
law enforcement. Detective Mark Phillips remained with the Murfreesboro Police Department,
mentoring younger officers while taking on new homicide cases. Detective
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Sandra Ortiga had been promoted to lieutenant, recognized for her
leadership during the Simmons investigtiongation, and other high profile cases.
Both remained respected figures in the department and the local community,
often appearing in public forums to discuss crime prevention and
community safety. Meanwhile, Holly's legacy lived on in the neighborhood
she had loved so much. Volunteers who had worked alongside
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her at Second Harvest Souls reopened the pantry under a
new name, Holly's Table. The pantry continued serving families in need,
distributing fresh vegetables, canned goods, and meals. Local schools and
churches contributed to the effort, ensuring that Holly's mission of
kindness and support did not end with her death. Community
members often spoke of her as pure kindness in human form,
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and the pantry became a living memorial to her spirit.
Though the tragedy left deep scars, life in Murfreesboro continued,
Holly's name remained a reminder of generosity. Delta and Dylan
focused on their new family, and the community rallied around
both loss and hope, determined to honor the woman whose
life had touched so many. This case shocked Murfreesboro, Tennessee,
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not only for its brutality, but for its disturbing motive,
a husband willing to kill his wife to pursue a
forbidden relationship with his teenage stepdaughter. In the end, justice
was served in court, but the human cost was immeasurable.
This has been true crime case files
This is true Crime case Files, where we examined some
of the most shocking and disturbing crimes in recent history.
Today's case takes us to Murfreesboro, Tennessee. In June of
twenty twenty three, this quiet suburban town in Middle Tennessee,
better known for college football games in farmers' markets, became
the site of one of the most twisted domestic crimes
in memory. It is the story of a husband who
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murdered his wife so he could marry his teenage stepdaughter.
The victim was Holly Simmons, aged thirty nine, a woman
remembered in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, as a helper, a giver, and
someone who always thought about others before herself. In June
of twenty twenty three, Holly was living in a quiet
suburban neighborhood not far from Middle Tennessee State University. The
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streets there were lined with modest houses, most with trim
blonds and small gardens. Family spent weekends at farmers' markets
or cheering for the Blu Raiders football team. Holly's life
fit neatly into that rhythm, but her daily focus was
not on sports or shopping. Her heart belonged to the
people who had less. Holly had recently remarried after leaving
her first husband, and she was trying to settle into
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her new marriage with Greg Simmons. But the part of
her life she poured the most energy into us her
food pantry. She founded it herself, naming its second Harvest Souls.
The pantry operated out of a converted church basement, where
shelves were stocked with canned beans, rice, pasta, and peanut butter,
foods meant to last through tough weeks. On weekday mornings,
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Holly could be found there in jeans and a T shirt,
sorting donations, calling local grocery stores, or greeting families who
stopped by for help. Friends described her as pure kindness
in human form. Neighbors remembered that if food was left
over at the end of the day, Holly would pack
it up and hand it out to neighborhood kids walking
home from school outside the pantry. Holly loved the small
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joys of life. She tended to a backyard garden where
she grew tomatoes, peppers, and herbs. Every June, her tomato
plants filled her Facebook page. She liked to post photos
of the ripening fruit, adding little notes about how tall
the vines had gotten. She also kept a handwritten gratitude journal,
something she updated each evening before bed. Friend who saw
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it said her entries were often about very simple things.
The tomatoes looked strong, or a child smiled when I
gave him cookies. Family meant everything to Holly. She was
the mother of eighteen year old Delta, who had just
graduated from high school that spring. Like many parents of teenagers,
Holly tried to balance love and discipline. She wanted to
support Delta's dreams, talking with her about college work or
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even a YouTube channel, but she also wanted her daughter
to make responsible choices. Friend said the relationship was sometimes strained,
but Holly never stopped bragging about Delta's milestones. She even
shared graduation photos on Facebook, writing that she was so
proud of my girl. In the days before her death,
Holly's focus was on the summer ahead. She talked about
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expanding her pantry into a nonprofit that could partner with
local churches. She had called a friend about filing pips
and dreamed of applying for small grants. She had hope, energy,
and plans for the future to those who knew her.
She seemed content, always smiling, and full of ideas, But
behind the quiet walls of her home, danger was already
moving closer in ways she could not have imagined. On
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the warm summer morning of June seventeenth, twenty twenty three,
Murfreesboro was waking up to a typical Saturday. The sky
was bright, the air already sticky with Tennessee humidity, and
the sounds of lawn mowers buzzed across the neighborhood. At
around nine o'clock, a m. Holly Simmons's neighbor, Angela Martin,
walked across the street to Holly's house. Angela, who was
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in her mid forties and active in her church, had
planned to pick up donated food from Holly for a
week in community event. Angela had known Holly for years
through the food pantry. She admired Holly's generosity and often
helped her load boxes of canned goods. That morning, Angela
expected Holly to be bustling around, maybe with coffee in hand,
ready to hand over bags of pasta and rice, But
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when she knocked on the front door, no one answered.
Angela knocked again, calling Holly's name, still silence growing uneasy,
Angela walked around to the back. The sliding door was unlocked,
something Holly often did when she expected visitors from the pantry.
Angela stepped inside. The house felt strangely quiet. A half
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drum mug of tea sat on the kitchen counter, and
the faint sound of running water came from upstairs. Angela
climbed the staircase, her heart beating faster with each step.
When she reached the bathroom, the door was open. That
was when she saw Holly. Her body was in the bathroom,
the water still half filled, and cloudy ruses marked her
face and arms. Her head was tilted unnaturally, and she
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wasn't moving. At first, Angela thought Holly might have slipped.
Bathrooms can be dangerous, especially with wet tile floors, but
something about the scene felt wrong. The bruises looked severe,
and the way Holly's body was positioned did not sing
like a simple fall. Angela later told investigators she frozen place,
unable to process what she was seeing. Her hands shook
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as she pulled out her phone. Her voice broke when
she dialed nine one one, telling the dispatcher she's gone.
She's not breathing. She gave Holly's address quickly, almost stumbling
over the numbers. The dispatcher instructed her to stay calm
and wait for first responders. Angela backed away from the bathroom,
pacing the hallway. She felt fear, disbelief, and grief all
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at once. This was her friend, the woman who ran
a food pantry, who always had a smile and a
bag of groceries ready for anyone in need. Angela could
not understand how Holly, full of plans and energy just
days earlier, was now lifeless in her own home. That morning,
the quiet suburban street, usually filled with the sounds of
children playing and neighbors watering their gardens, became the setting
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of a tragedy that would soon shock the entire community.
When Angela Martin's nine one one call came in at
nine seven am on June seventeen, twenty twenty three, the
Murfreesboro Police Department to day dispatch patrol cars and detectives
right away. On a Saturday morning when most of the
town was headed to farmers' markets or mowing their lawns.
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Police cruisers sped down the quiet suburban street with lights flashing.
Detectives Mark Phillips and Sandra Ortega were assigned to lead
the investigation. Phillips, in his early fifties, was known around
the department for his calm, methodical approach. He had worked
homicides for more than two decades and rarely raised his voice. Ortega,
in her forties, was his opposite, direct, outspoken, and quick
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to notice details others missed. Together, they made a strong team.
When they entered the house, officers had already cleared the downstairs.
The kitchen counter still held a half finished cup of
tea and an open notebook. Signs of an ordinary morning interrupted,
but as Phillips and Ortega climbed the stairs, they could
smell a mix of water, iron, and something darker, the
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metallic tang of blood. The upstairs bathroom revealed a grim scene.
Holly Simmons's body was lying naked beside the back. She
had been beaten with bruises and cuts across her face
and head. The tub itself still held water splashed onto
the tile floor. It was clear someone had tried to
make the death look like a simple accident, a slip
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and fall in the bathroom, but the staging was sloppy,
and both detectives saw through it. Immediately. Phillips crouched near
the tub, noting that Holly's injuries didn't line up with
the fall. The wounds were too deep, the pattern too
deliberate or Tiga, standing near the doorway, pointed out blood
spatter on the wall above the sink, far from where
a fall would have caused impact. This isn't an accident,
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she said, this is violence. Their search uncovered a hammer
partially hidden under a damp towel in the corner of
the bathroom. The hammer had blood on its head and
strands of hair stuck to it. Forensics later confirmed it
was the murder weapon. Holly had been struck multiple times
with the hammer before being drowned in her own bathtom
Investigators began processing the scene step by step. Crime scene
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technicians photographed everything from the placement of the body to
the droplets of water on the tile. They dusted for
fingerprints on the hammer, the sink, and the bathroom door.
Swams were taken from under Holly's fingernails, where she appeared
to have struggled. The medical examiner arrived to prepare the
body for transport, noting the combination of blunt forced trauma
and drowning as the likely cause of death. Outside, yellow
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tapes stretched across the front yard, blocking off curious neighbors
who had gathered on sidewalks. Parents held their children close,
whispering as they watched uniformed officers carry evidence bags to
waiting cars. By late afternoon, the ruse of an accidental
fall had been completely disproven. Detectives Phillips and Ortega announced
that Holly Simmons death was officially being investigated as a homicide.
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What had begun as a neighbour's morning visit to pick
up food donations was now a murder case that would
shake Murphrey's Burrow to its core. The first person detectives
turned their attention to his Delta Simmons, Hally's only child.
Delta had just turned eighteen years old a few weeks earlier,
and she had celebrated her high school graduation in late
May of twenty twenty three with her classmates at Segull
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High School in Murfreesboro. Friends remembered her wearing a short,
glittery dress to the senior banquet and posting selfies online
with captions about finally being free. Delta was in a
season of transition. She was working part time at a
tanning salon in a local strip mall, where she spent
long hours at the front desk, scheduling appointments, cleaning tanning beds,
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and chatting with regular customers. Coworkers later described her as
flashy and dramatic, often arriving to work with long false eyelashes,
acrylic nails, and full make up, even for a morning shift.
She told friends she wanted to start a YouTube channel
about make up tutorials, hoping to build an audience and
maybe one day make a living online. Her relationship with
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her mother, however, was strained. Holly was proud of her daughter,
but wanted her to focus on school or steady work.
She encouraged Delta to consider community college or training programs. Delta,
who dreamed of internet fame, saw her mother is out
of touch. According to friends, she sometimes called Holly old
fashioned dumb bleat when they argued, mocking Holly's simple lifestyle
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and her devotion to the food pantry. Because she lived
in the house and was the closest person to Holly,
Delta immediately became a person of interest. Detectives Mark Phillips
and Sandra Ortega brought her in for questioning at the
police station the afternoon of June seventeen. From the start,
Delta's behavior stood out. Sitting across from the detectives in
a small interview room, she slouched in her chair and
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kept glancing at her phone, which police had allowed her
to keep briefly before collecting it as evidence. When Phillips
asked her to describe the last time she saw her
mother alive, Delta sighed loudly and rolled her eyes. Her
answers were short, often no more than a sentence or two.
Ortiga pressed her about her relationship with Holly. Delta admitted
they argued often, especially about her future money and her
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mother's annoying rules. At one point, she shrugged and muttered
that Holly didn't get her and wasn't going to stop now.
Two investigators her lack of visible grief was unsettling. Most teenagers,
even those who fought with their parents, would show some
emotion after losing them. Delta, in contrast, seemed cold and detached.
Detectives considered resentment as a possible motive. Holly's rules and
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restrictions could have pushed Delta to lash out, but when
pressed harder, Delta denied any involvement She insisted she had
nothing to do with her mother's death and seemed irritated
that detectives were even asking. Her tone was flat at times,
almost bored, as if she wanted the interview to be
over quickly. Police noted her odd behavior in their reports,
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but they lacked direct evidence linking her to the crime.
There were no signs of a struggle in her room,
no blood on her belongings, and no messages on her
phone that suggested planning or knowledge of the murder. For
the moment, Delta remained on their radar, but investigators knew
they would need to keep looking elsewhere. Her detachment raised suspicion,
but suspicion alone was not enough to charge her. After
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speaking with Delta, detectives quickly turned their attention to Greg Simmons,
Holly's husband. Gregg was forty two years old and had
married Holly less than two years earlier. He worked as
a tow truck driver for a local company off Broad Street,
where he was often seen hauling broken down cars in
and out of the shop around town. Greg had a
mixed reputation. Some people found him funny and outgoing, with
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a booming laugh that could fill a room. Others, especially
those who had clashed with him, described him miss charming
until he wasn't. When his mood turned, Greg could be harsh,
snapping at people without warning. In June of twenty twenty three,
Greg was known to spend blond nights at works, sometimes
hanging around gas stations after a tow drinking sodas and
swapping stories with other drivers. He liked to project himself
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as a family man, telling customers about his wife Holly
and his step daughter Delta, but investigators soon learned that
his private life looked very different from the picture he
painted in public. On the morning of June seventeen, when
Holly's body was discovered, Greg told detectives he had been
working a shift and couldn't have been home, But when
police checked his work logs and GPS records from his truck,
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the timeline didn't add up. His story kept shifting, first
claiming he had been on the road, then later saying
he had stopped for breakfast. The more he spoke, the
more tangled his alibi became. Detectives Phillips and Ortega noticed
Gregg's temper during questioning. At first, he tried to appear calm,
leaning back in his chair and insisting he loved Holly.
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But as they pressed him, his voice grew louder and
his answers sharper. He pounded his fist on the table
at one point, shouting I didn't hurt her. His behavior
only made the investigators more certain that he was hiding something.
The turning point came when police obtained Greg's phone. Forensic
specialists calmed through his text messages, and what they found
changed the entire direction of the case. Hidden among everyday
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conversations about work and bills were hundreds of messages between
Greg and Delta, his teenage stepdaughter. The messages revealed not
only an inappropriate relationship, but also a disturbing plan. Greg
had been carrying on an affair with Delta, promising her
that they would soon be together without Holly in the way.
One message sent in early June read that he would
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make her his June bride. Investigators were stunned. It was
evidence that pointed to motive. Greg wanted Holly gone so
he could marry Delta. When confronted with the texts, Gregg's
reaction was telling. At first, he denied everything, claiming the
messages were jokes or taken out of context, But as
detectives read the words back to him, his face turned
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red and his answers stumbled. He went from shouting to sulking,
his confidence slipping away. The affair explained Delta's detached behavior
earlier that day and revealed the depth of Gregg's betrayal. Holly,
the woman who built her life around kindness and community,
had been living under the same roof as a husband
plotting against her with her own daughter. By the end
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of June seventeen, police knew Greg Simmons had both the
motive and the opportunity. The picture of holly death was
no longer an accident, no longer a mystery. It was
a crime driven by obsession, deceit, and a man's desire
to control the future at any cost. By late June
twenty twenty three, Murfreesboro was buzzing with gossip about the
Simmons case. Coffee shops along Main Street were packed with
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people whispering about what might have happened inside Hollby's house.
The news traveled fast through Facebook groups, talk clips, and
text chains. Everyone had a theory. But on June twenty one,
twenty twenty three, during a week of muggy ninety degree
afternoons and thunderstorms rolling across Rutherford County. The investigation took
a shocking turn that afternoon, detectives brought Delta Simmons, Holly's
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only daughter, back in for another round of questioning. She
had graduated high school just weeks before and was spending
most of her time scrolling TikTok, working shortships at the
tanning salon, and hanging out with friends at Sonic. She
showed up to the police station wearing oversized lashes, tight jeans,
and a crop top, her phone in her hand. Even
as she sat across from investigators, Delta had already unsettled
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police with her flat, detached responses about her mother's death. Now,
as she tapped her nails on the table, she casually
dropped a bombshell. She was pregnant. At first, Delta told
detectives that Greg, her forty two year old stepfather, was
the father of the baby. She admitted they had been
secretly involved for months and insisted Greg had promised to
leave Holly so they could build the life together. For investigators,
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the confession explained Greg's motive in a new and horrifying light.
If Delta was pregnant with Gregg's child. The murder suddenly
looked like a desperate attempt to clear the path for
a future with her, but detectives weren't about to take
her word at face value. Within hours, they ordered DNA testing.
The results stunned everyone. Greg was not the father. The
baby belonged to Dylan Ross, Delta's ex boyfriend from high school.
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Dylan was nineteen, a former baseball player who had dated
Delta on and off throughout senior year. Friends described him
as quiet and polite, the kind of kid who worked
part time at Kroger and drove an old Ford pickup.
By June, he and Delta had broken up, but their
connection clearly hadn't ended. The DNA test proved it Dylan,
not Greg, was the father. This revelation sent shockwaves through
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the case. Greg had killed Holly under the false belief
that Delta was carrying his child. He had risked everything,
his marriage, his freedom, and Holly's life for a fantasy
that wasn't even real. Detectives later described the discovery as
chilling because it showed just how far Greg's delusion had gone.
When investigators confronted Delta with the results. Her reaction was
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once again strangely detached. She shrugged, fiddled with her phone,
and said Dylan was probably a better dad anyway. The
lack of emotion disturbed detectives, who noted in their reports
that she never once cried for her mother during questioning.
Even as the evidence mounted, the story hit local news
outlets The next morning. Headlines on the Murphresboro Post and
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national TV stations shouted fragmancy twist in Simmons murder case
and baby not husband's new shocker in Holly Simmons homicide.
On Facebook. Neighbours flooded commet sections with disbelief and anger.
What had started as a suspected accident in a bathroom
had unraveled into one of the most disturbing scandals the
town had seen in years. Greg Simmons had murdered his wife,
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blinded by lies, manipulation, and the false hope of a
child who was never his. As the investigation into Holly
Simmons's death deepened in late June twenty twenty three, detectives
shifted their focus back to Dylan Ross, Delta's nineteen year
old ex boyfriend. On paper, Dylan looked like a strong suspect.
He was young, hot headed, and had a history of
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public fights with Delta, especially after their breakup. His name
had already circulated among neighbors on Facebook, with some pointing
to his temper as a possible clue. Dylan had grown
up in Murfreesborough, the kind of teenager people often described
as having a bad boy streak. He had dropped out
of high school of his junior year and bounced between jobs,
most recently stocking shells at Walmart off old Fort Parkway.
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In his free time, he hung around car meet ups
in the Target parking lot, blasting loud rap music and
showing off his souped up Honda Civic with a custom muffler.
His Instagram page was filled with photos of burnouts, puddies,
and captions about loyalty and revenge. His relationship with Delta
had been rocky from the stark. Friends said they were
on again, off again for nearly two years, always breaking
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up and making up in dramatic fashion. Their arguments were
loud in public, sometimes spilling into the high school cafeteria
or even the stands at football games. One neighbor recalled
seeing them yelling at each other in Holly's driveway just
weeks before the murder. The relationship finally ended when Dylan
learned Delta had cheated with her stepfather, Greg Simmons. To Dylan,
the betrayal was more than humiliating, it was devastating. Friends
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remembered him pacing outside his car, red faced, telling anyone
who would listen that he would never forgive her. Because
of this history, detectives couldn't ignore him. On June twenty three,
twenty twenty three, just days after the pregnancy twist made headlines,
police brought Dylan in for questioning at the Murphrey's Brow station.
He wore a black coodie despite the sticky summer heat,
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his hands shoved deep into the pockets. His first words
to detectives were blunt, I didn't kill nobody. During hours
of questioning, Dylan was surprisingly cooperative. He admitted he was
furious at Delta for cheating on him, especially with Greg,
but he insisted he had nothing to do with Holly's death.
He leaned back in his chair, capping his foot nervously,
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but he answered every question. Detectives pressed him hard, pointing
out his past fights with Delta and the rumors swirling
around town. Dylan didn't deny being jealous. He even admitted
he once thought about teaching Great a lesson, but when
it came to the murder, he swore on his life
he wasn't involved. Evidence supported his claim. DNA tests from
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the bathroom and hammer came back negative for Dylan. His
phone wrecked showed he was at home the night Holly died,
playing Xbox with two friends who later confirmed his alibi.
There was no trace linking him to the crime scene.
When detectives told him he was cleared, Dylan reportedly let
out a frustrated laugh. I may be dumber than a
newborn calf, he said, but not a bleeping killer. Relieved
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but still bitter, Dylan left the station shaking his head.
Outside the Tennessee heap pressed down on the pavement as
he climbed into his civic and sped off his muffler,
growling for investigators, Dylan was no longer a suspect. The
spotlight returned fully to Greg Simmons and the chilling choices
he had already made. By the final week of June
twenty twenty three, detectives in Murfreesboro had pieced together the
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grim truth the murderer was Greg Simmons, forty two years old,
Holly's husband of barely two years. The man neighbors once
described as charming until he wasn't, had carried out a
crime that shocked even seasoned investigators. Gregg's plan was both
brutal and bizarre. Evidence showed he had struck Holly in
the head multiple times with a hammer, leaving deep bruises
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and lacerations. After she was incapacitated, he dragged her to
the bathroom, filled the tub, and held her under the
water until she drowned. Then, in a clumsy attempt at deception,
he staged the scene to look like Holly had slipped
and fallen in the bathroom, but detectives quickly saw through
the ruse. The bruises were too severe, the blood spattered
too telling, and the hammer hidden under a towel sealed
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the conclusion. His motive, investigators learned, was even more disturbing
than the method. Gregg killed Holly so he could marry Delta,
his teenage stepdaughter, whom he called his true soulmate. In
his mind, Holly had become nothing more than an obstacle
to his fantasy future. On Greg's cell phone, detectives uncovered
disturbing internet searches. Phrases like step daughter marriage, law's Tennessee
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and how to prove bathtub drowning accident painted a chilling
picture of premeditation. On June twenty five, twenty twenty three,
the decision was made. Detectives Mark Phillips and Sandra Ortega,
who had led the investigation from the start, moved in
to make the arrest. Grape was found at his work place,
a small tow yard on the edge of town near
the interstate. It was a sweltering Sunday afternoon, but kind
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where the air shimmered off the asshle workers stood by
in disbelief as unmarked police cars rolled in. When approached,
Gregg didn't run or resist. Instead, he froze, his hands,
dropping to his sides as officers closed in. Witnesses later
said he looked like the life drained out of him.
As handcuffs clicked around his wrists, Gregg muttered quietly, she
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was in the way Holly, stood in the way of happiness.
The arrest sent ripples of shock through Murfreesboro, a city
more accustomed to college football games and Saturday farmers markets
than grisly domestic crimes. For Holly's friend of the food pantry,
the news was both a relief and a heartbreak. Relief
that her killer had been caught, but heartbreak that the
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man she had trusted most in her second chance at
marriage was the one who ended her life. Delta, meanwhile,
was left in tears when she learned of Gregg's confession.
Investigators noted her strange detachment in earlier interviews, but in
this moment, the reality sank in. The man she believed
would give her freedom and love had destroyed her family
and left her with nothing but shame and confusion. For
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the community, Gregg's arrest was the turning point. The quiet
suburban neighborhood where Holly once handed out tomatoes from her
garden and snacks to children, now carried the memory of
a crime that would never be forgotten. The murder trial
of Greg Simmons opened in March twenty twenty five, nearly
two years after Holly's death. By then, Murfreesboro had moved
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on to everyday rhythms, spring baseball at the high school,
traffic jams along Olford Parkway, and students preparing for college
finals at Middle Tennessee State University, but inside the Rutherford
County Courthouse, all eyes were on a case that had
never faded from memory. The lead prosecutor was Janet Collins
forty six, a determined attorney known across Tennessee for her
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her sharp cross examinations and steady composure. In her opening statement,
Collins told jurors that Gregg's crime was not an accident
or a sudden outburst, but a carefully planned killing. She
walked them through the disturbing internet searches found on Greg's fund, stepdaughter,
marriage law's Tennessee and how to prove bathtub drowning accident.
(25:20):
Heatch phrase, she argued, showed that Gray had mapped out
exactly how he would rid himself of Holly to pursue
an illegal and twisted fantasy with her daughter. The defense attorney,
Michael Reeves, aged fifty five, tried to soften Greg's actions. Reeves,
to courtroom bedteran known for his calm voice and tailored suits,
argued that Greg acted in a moment of passion. He
(25:41):
claimed Greg was trapped in an unhappy marriage and simply snapped.
He pleaded for leniency, suggesting Greg should not spend the
rest of his life behind bars. The most dramatic moment
of the trial came when Delta Simmons, now twenty, took
the stand. Dressed in a plain blouse and speaking quietly,
she testified against Grace. She told the jury how he
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had manipulated her, filling her head with promises of luxury trips,
freedom from rules, and a real wedding once Holly was gone.
She admitted she once believed him, but by the time
of the murder she had realized how dangerous he was.
Many in the courtroom wept as she recounted the betrayal,
her voice shaking but clear. Holly's family filled the benches,
holding hands and passing tissues. Friends from the food pantry
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came as well, wearing pins shaped like small tomatoes to
honor Holly's love of gardening. The emotional weight in the
courtroom was heavy, each testimony a reminder of the life
greg had taken. After a week of testimony, the jury
reached a unanimous verdict guilty of first eary murder. Gregg
Simmons was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility
of parole. He showed little emotion as the sentence was read,
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staring straight ahead, his jaw tight. For Holly's family, the
verdict brought a measure of relief, though the pain was
far from gone. They told reporters afterward that justice had
been served, but no the sentence could bring back the
woman they described as pure kindness in human form. The
trial's outcome closed one chapter of the case, but for
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those who loved Holly, the loss remained raw, a wound
time alone could not heal. By March of twenty twenty five,
the Simmons case had largely receded from the front pages,
but its impact remained deep. In Murfreesboro, greg Simmons, now
officially convicted of first degree murder, had been transferred to
a maximum security prison in Tennessee. Reports from correctional officers
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indicated that he was withdrawn, bitter, and largely kept to
himself in the prison yard. He reportedly avoided other inmates
and spent his time reading legal documents and newspapers, his
plans for a life with Delta having banished entirely, Delta Simmons,
now twenty, moved in with relatives immediately after the trial.
She gave birth to her son, fathered by her ex boyfriend,
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Dylan Ross. Whose life had quietly returned to normal after
being cleared of any wrongdoing. Delta focused on building her life,
taking college courses online, and learning to navigate motherhood under
the watchful eyes of her family. She has since cut
all contact with Greg, determined to put the past behind her.
Neighbors and friends said she was reserved, but seemed determined
(28:14):
to create a safe and stable environment for her child,
often posting subvile updates about daily life on social media
without drawing attention to the past. Dylan returned to work
at Walmart, stocking shells and keeping a low profile in
the small Tennessee town. Friends described him as quieter than before,
more reflective, and focused on providing support to Delta and
(28:34):
the baby. Though the couple had been through a public scandal,
Dylan and Delta worked to ensure the child had a
family life untouched by the chaos of the murder case.
The detectives who led the investigation continued their work in
law enforcement. Detective Mark Phillips remained with the Murfreesboro Police Department,
mentoring younger officers while taking on new homicide cases. Detective
(28:55):
Sandra Ortiga had been promoted to lieutenant, recognized for her
leadership during the Simmons investigtiongation, and other high profile cases.
Both remained respected figures in the department and the local community,
often appearing in public forums to discuss crime prevention and
community safety. Meanwhile, Holly's legacy lived on in the neighborhood
she had loved so much. Volunteers who had worked alongside
(29:16):
her at Second Harvest Souls reopened the pantry under a
new name, Holly's Table. The pantry continued serving families in need,
distributing fresh vegetables, canned goods, and meals. Local schools and
churches contributed to the effort, ensuring that Holly's mission of
kindness and support did not end with her death. Community
members often spoke of her as pure kindness in human form,
(29:38):
and the pantry became a living memorial to her spirit.
Though the tragedy left deep scars, life in Murfreesboro continued,
Holly's name remained a reminder of generosity. Delta and Dylan
focused on their new family, and the community rallied around
both loss and hope, determined to honor the woman whose
life had touched so many. This case shocked Murfreesboro, Tennessee,
(30:00):
not only for its brutality, but for its disturbing motive,
a husband willing to kill his wife to pursue a
forbidden relationship with his teenage stepdaughter. In the end, justice
was served in court, but the human cost was immeasurable.
This has been true crime case files
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