A Stone County man has been sentenced to two terms of life in prison after the 2021 killings of his girlfriend and his father.
Royce Calkins (pictured), 45, was found guilty of first-degree murder last week for the 2021 deaths of his girlfriend, Brandy Patrick, 40, and his father, Ronald Calkins, 64.
According to the court information filed, around 3 p.m. on March 9, 2021, the Stone County Sheriff’s Department received a 911 call from Patrick’s son, who had gone to the residence to check on his mother.
In the court documents, the son said he discovered the front door of the residence was open, and when he went into the kitchen area, he found his mother and the owner of the residence, Ronald Calkins, deceased on the floor. Investigators later determined the two had been shot.
As the investigation progressed, authorities said the elder Calkins’ 2001 white Dodge Ram was missing from the residence. Later that day, the truck was spotted at a grocery store in Fifty-Six. The court information said deputies responded and took Royce Calkins into custody without incident. Deputies reported in the affidavit of arrest that the younger Calkins told them, “I’m sorry about all this. It was an accident.”
Later, Royce Calkins told authorities he believed his father and girlfriend had been conspiring against him, and others were in on it, according to the court documents.
The arrest affidavit also noted that while being processed at the Stone County Jail, Calkins was asked if he had any medical conditions. He replied he suffered from a “broken heart because of what he had to do,” the affidavit said.
Image Stone County Sheriff’s Department
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