On Tuesday March 19,2024 Colbert County Circuit Court, Richard Kevin Hester, 59, the man accused of killing John Thomas Call, 34, back in 2019 pleaded guilty to murder in exchange for a plea deal that allows him to serve 4 and a 1/2 years in prison to run concurrent with a prior sentence on a drug conviction that he still has 7 years left to serve. Hester must serve the 7 years on the drug conviction.
Judge Kyle Brown sentenced Hester to 20 years in prison split with 4 1/2 years to serve with the remainder suspended for five years. If Hester reoffends after he is released, he will have to serve the full 20 year sentence in prison.
Hester was accused of capital murder in an ambush style killing of JT Call on John Street in Tuscumbia. Call was found behind the wheel of a pickup truck with a gunshot wound to the head. Hester has been incarcerated since September of 2019. The murder reportedly occurred while Hester was on parole. This according to courthouse records.
After his Tuesday hearing, Hester was taken back to the Colbert County Jail where he will await transfer to Kilby Correctional Facility to be processed into the Alabama Department of Corrections.
Hester was represented by appointed counsel Nathan Johnson and Sheila Morgan. The state was represented by the Alabama Attorney General’s Office.
