Livingston man gets 99 years for 2017 murder of wife

LIVINGSTON, Texas (KTRE) - A man was sentenced to 99 years in prison Monday for the 2017 murder of his wife.

John Orbon Speights, 78, of Livingston, was arrested on Aug. 26, 2017, for the murder of his wife, Carolyn Carroll. Speights was sentenced to 99 years in state prison on Monday in Judge John Wells III’s court.

Carroll had activated her life alert that night saying Speights was drunk and she was afraid, a Polk County DA press release said, leading to response from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. Upon arrival, Carroll was unresponsive, and Speights was arrested on a charge of first degree murder.

According to a press release from the original case, Speights told responders that he had accidentally shot Carroll. The woman was found dead in her bedroom with a shotgun lying on the bed, the release said. The deputy who obtained Speights’ warrant said the man appeared intoxicated and smelled of alcohol.

Speights was held in the Polk County Jail on a $200,000 bond.