Man pleads guilty in double murder

Justin Ray Calbick apologized Thursday in Flathead County District Court after pleading guilty to the 2010 shooting deaths of his father and brother and a hostage situation that followed the murders.

Calbick’s admission came after he reached a plea agreement with the Flathead County Attorney’s Office that reduced the initial slate of charges.

The deal, dependent on Calbick’s guilty plea to two counts of mitigated deliberate homicide and one count of burglary, recommends that the former Creston man serve two consecutive 50-year sentences in Montana State Prison with a 40-year sentence for the burglary charge to be served concurrently.

Prosecutors also are recommending that Calbick spend 50 years in prison before he is eligible for parole. Under the terms of the agreement, Calbick maintains his right to argue for a lesser sentence.

“All I can say is I’m sorry for what I’ve done,” said Calbick, clothed in a blue jail-issued uniform and seated on the witness stand. “The only way I can prove to you that I’m sorry is willingly taking these charges and spending the rest of my life in prison.”

The 31-year-old Calbick, who has been held in the Flathead County Detention Center since his January 2010 arrest, said pleading guilty is “all I can offer to show you how sorry I am” as several family members looked on in the courtroom gallery.

Calbick initially was charged with two counts of deliberate homicide and felony charges of sexual intercourse without consent, assault with a weapon, partner/family member assault and kidnapping — charges that carried combined maximum penalties of more than 300 years in prison.

The bodies of Donald and Stacey Calbick were found Jan. 28 in Donald Calbick’s Mennonite Church Road home.

The fatal shootings are believed to have occurred sometime before a kidnapping and hostage situation the night of Jan. 27.

Around 9:30 p.m. that night, Calbick entered the home of his estranged wife, Sarah Peters, pointed a .22-caliber rifle at her and told her to tie up her father and her friend with duct tape, then bound her. Three young children, who were not bound, also were in the house at the time, according to court documents.

For three hours, the kidnapping victims endured threats and intimidation from Calbick, who kept the gun on them, according to victim statements.

The friend eventually persuaded Calbick to let her go after promising not to contact authorities. She also talked him into giving her the rifle. She was freed and returned home with the rifle just before 1 a.m.

Calbick was arrested a short time later.

In court Thursday, he quietly responded to questions from District Judge Katherine Curtis, his attorney Vickie Frazier and Deputy County Attorney Lori Adams.

The charges of deliberate homicide were downgraded to mitigated deliberate homicide, meaning the murders were committed as Calbick was “under the influence of extreme mental or emotional stress for which there is reasonable explanation or excuse,” according to Montana state law.

Frazier asked Calbick a series of questions to demonstrate that he was under extreme stress due to the deteriorating relationship with his wife, restrictions placed on his visits with their children and the loss of his job.

He responded “yes” when Frazier asked if there is a history of alcoholism in his family, and likewise confirmed that he had been in an altercation with Stacy and Donald Calbick at the time of the shooting.

“In the heat of the moment, you shot your father Don Calbick?” Frazier asked.

“Yes,” Calbick replied, before responding in the same way when asked if he also shot his brother Stacey.

As for the subsequent hostage situation, Calbick said: “I hadn’t directly aimed [the gun] at anyone,” but admitted his actions caused the hostages to fear for their lives.

 Curtis, who is not bound by the plea agreement, is scheduled to sentence Calbick at a hearing tentatively scheduled for March 10.

Reporter Eric Schwartz may be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at eschwartz@dailyinterlake.com.