Florida Rapper Asks for Death Penalty in Murder of Pregnant Girlfriend
Billy Adams III, also known as Ace Nh, stated in a letter to the court that he does not wish for his lawyers to pursue mitigation arguments and wants to be sentenced to death.
A Florida rapper convicted of killing his pregnant girlfriend and her unborn child has requested the death penalty, asking his lawyers to forego mitigation arguments. Billy Adams III, known by his rap name Ace Nh, submitted a handwritten letter to Hillsborough County Court Judge Mark R Wolfe last week, stating his desire for the death sentence for the January 2023 murder of Alana Sims, who was five months pregnant.
Sims was found shot in the head next to her car with her two-year-old child in the backseat. Court documents indicate Adams killed Sims because he did not want to be involved in her life or have a child at that time. He had also confided in another woman about his plans prior to the incident, texting her the day before, "Tomorrow dis s*** done."
Adams's letter, filed on October 12, 2026, specified that he wants to be sentenced according to the jury's recommendation during the penalty phase of the trial, which concluded with an 8-4 vote for the death penalty. His sentencing is scheduled for December 1.
Adams's legal team had previously contested the application of a new Florida law, Senate Bill 450, which was signed after the trial began. This law changed the requirement for a death penalty sentence from a unanimous jury decision to a supermajority of eight jurors. The defense argued that applying this law retroactively violated the ex post facto clause, but the state contended that it was not a retroactive measure as Adams's trial was still ongoing. The jury's 8-4 vote met the threshold for imposing the death sentence under the revised law.