‘I knew something terrible had happened’ slain deputy’s father says in killer’s sentencing hearing

Jurors wept Wednesday a the parents of slain Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputy Michael Norris testified about the loss of their youngest child.

Norris, 24, was a newlywed when he was fatally shot Sept. 13, 2014, after responding to a report of a suicidal person.

Jurors deliberated about 30 minutes Tuesday before finding 49-year-old Christopher Keith Calmer guilty of murder and several other charges stemming from the shooting at his parents’ house near Interstate 75 and Pate Road. Norris and deputy Jeff Wilson had been dispatched to the house after Calmer’s uncle called 911 saying Calmer was suicidal.

The same jury will decide whether Calmer will be sentenced to life, life without the possibility of parole or death.

Born in 1990 and raised in Culloden, Norris enjoyed hunting, fishing and the outdoors. He was a boy scout and a volunteer firefighter, his mother, Fran Norris testified.

He played soccer and other sports.

A graduate of Mary Persons High School in Forsyth, Norris obtained a degree from Gordon College before becoming a Monroe County deputy.

Norris was at the end of his shift that Saturday when he was dispatched to the Calmer house. He’d just helped a friend change a tire, his mother said.

Bennett Norris, Norris’s father, said he’d sat down to watch the Georgia Bulldogs play football against the University of South Carolina on TV when he heard an emergency call on his volunteer firefighter radio.

He heard a familiar voice say shots had been fired and deputies were down.

Norris knew his son was on duty and had responded to the Calmer house.

“In my heart I knew something horrible had happened,” Norris testified.

Ricky Williams, a friend of Calmer’s also testified Wednesday morning.

Williams talked about their friendship and said he’d never known Calmer to be violent.

“That one day he made a very terrible and tragic decision. That was that one day,” he said. “I just hope you can find it in your heart not to kill him.”

This story was originally published June 14, 2017 at 11:11 AM with the headline "‘I knew something terrible had happened’ slain deputy’s father says in killer’s sentencing hearing."