252nd District Court hands 40-year sentence in Beaumont murder; multiple probations, bonds and pleas resolved

A presiding judge in the 252nd District Court sentenced Augusta Simon to 40 years in the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on a plea agreement after the court received a presentence report and victim-family statements. The judge accepted Simon’s guilty plea to a first-degree murder charge and imposed credit for time already served.

The sentence followed testimony from eyewitnesses and family members. Jalen Morris testified that, as he and the victim, Leroy Smith, left a club on Sept. 9, 2023, a person walked toward them and “just immediately shoots” Smith at close range, then fled, Morris said. Kristy Thomas, the victim’s mother, described Smith as nonviolent and said his six children have suffered since his death.

Prosecutor Smith urged the court to follow the plea agreement and the recommendation in the presentence investigation. Defense attorney Burbank asked the court to consider Simon’s statements…