Man Gets 15 Years to Life in Prison For Killing Roommate

A 25-year-old man who hacked his roommate to death with an ax and buried him in the back yard of his Van Nuys home after a lover’s quarrel was sentenced Friday to 15 years to life in prison.

Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Alan B. Haber gave Kevin Lee Simmons the mandatory sentence for second-degree murder in the death of David Parris, 51, a printer.

Simmons struck Parris about 18 times with an ax on Aug. 1, 1987, then buried him in the back yard of the house they shared in the 7300 block of Katherine Avenue, prosecutors said.

The home is next door to that of City Councilman Ernani Bernardi.

Parris’ body was not discovered until Christmas Eve, 1987, when Jack Green, 33, a carpenter who had just moved into the house, began cleaning up the back yard.

Green found Parris’ body in a shallow grave surrounded by a concrete wall beneath a pile of wooden pallets. His suspicions had earlier been aroused by a large bloodstain he found on a mattress in the home’s master bedroom, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Bradford E. Stone.

Simmons, who was using Parris’ car and checkbook, was arrested a few days later at the home of an acquaintance in Lake View Terrace, Stone said.

Simmons was originally charged with first-degree murder but pleaded guilty to the reduced charge in January in a plea-bargain agreement with prosecutors, Stone said.

Stone said the killing was not premeditated, as is required to prove first-degree murder.

Simmons told Los Angeles police that he struck Parris with an ax after a lover’s quarrel because Parris was “too possessive,” prosecutors said. Simmons, who is unemployed, and Parris had been together about a year, prosecutors said.

Neighbors later said Simmons told those who asked about Parris’ whereabouts that Parris had lost his job and moved to Florida.