Deka Simmons, 40, was found guilty of first-degree murder on Wednesday for killing and dismembering 48-year-old Daxcimo Ceja in 2022.

The trial against Simmons began this month. Prosecutors alleged during closing arguments Tuesday that Simmons killed Ceja in a garage in Colorado Springs because he was a registered sex offender. Prosecutor Sharon Flaherty said that Ceja allegedly had a relationship with a 17-year-old girl in California when he was 25.

Flaherty described Simmons during closing arguments as a woman with an obsession over child molestation because of fears that her daughter was a victim of sex trafficking.

“(Simmons) has an unrestrained hatred for anyone who would molest a child,” Flaherty said, going on to describe it as a “fixation” and “paranoia” for Simmons.

Closing arguments ended late afternoon Tuesday, and the jury deliberated for approximately seven hours before reaching a verdict on Wednesday afternoon.

The jury of 10 women and two men found Simmons guilty on three charges, the highest being first-degree murder.

As the verdict was read by Judge David Gilbert, Simmons expressed little emotion, writing and passing notes with members of her defense team.

“I don’t think I can fully put into words the relief I have for this family,” prosecutor Jennifer Viehman said. “It really has been a long road, there really have been a lot of hurdles. … What this family had to endure is unimaginable.”

While the court was in recess before sentencing began, Simmons seemed relaxed, chatting with court staff and laughing with her defense team.

Ceja’s parents, Karen and Barry Joseph Fancher, gave brief victim-impact statements to the court to admonish the actions of Simmons.

“(Ceja) was killed for something he did 24 years ago,” Karen Fancher said to the court. “She won’t be on the street to hurt anyone else’s families like she has done her whole entire life.”

“Dax (Ceja) was a good person. He didn’t deserve to go out this way,” Barry Joseph Fancher said.

Simmons’ sentencing outcome was not a mystery: A conviction on first-degree murder in Colorado requires a sentence of life in prison without parole. Viehman requested the court also give the maximum possible sentences on the other two charges Simmons was found guilty of, tampering with a body and tampering with physical evidence. The judge gave Simmons sentences of 24 years and three years, respectively, on the lesser charges.

“The emotional toll of what Ms. Simmons did to Mr. Ceja — the emotional toll that this took on this family — I think that is deserving of this sentence,” Viehman told the court.

Simmons and her attorney David Lipka declined to comment to the court during sentencing, “as is standard,” Lipka said.

The only emotional outburst from Simmons came during sentencing while Gilbert was speaking to the defendant about her “obsession” with child molesters. While speaking about Simmons’ daughter, who Simmons believes was a victim of sex trafficking, Gilbert stated that the reality was that “there were court proceedings to keep her (Simmons’ daughter) safe from her.”

“You don’t know s— about me! F— you!” Simmons yelled in response.

As Gilbert continued, Simmons cried and continued to say expletives quietly.

At a hearing in 2022, Simmons was accused by prosecutors of being a suspect in other potential homicides, including the disappearance of Santino “Tino” Cardella.

One detective testified during the hearing that a confidential police informant claimed Simmons had killed at least three other people besides Ceja.

Simmons has not been charged in relation to Cardella’s disappearance or any homicides other than Ceja’s. Cardella was reported missing in April 2022.

When asked about potential further charges against Simmons, Viehman stated that an investigation is “ongoing,” but that she could not comment further.

Simmons does, however, face four open criminal cases in El Paso County: two cases that predate the homicide in which she is accused of felony menacing and aggravated robbery; a 2023 case in which she is accused of witness tampering and intimidation; and a 2019 assault case in which she is accused of probation violation.

Simmons is set to appear in court on all four open criminal cases Tuesday.

The Gazette previously reported that Simmons had an extensive criminal history in Colorado before her arrest for Ceja’s death, including a conviction in 2003 on accessory to murder for her involvement in the shooting death of Donna Oliveto, a former inmate with her in the El Paso County jail. Simmons was sentenced to 12 years in prison for her involvement in Oliveto’s death.