OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – An Oklahoma County judge says there is enough evidence for an Oklahoma man to stand trial for murdering his parents last year.
Shortly after 2:30 a.m. on March 4, 2019, police received a 911 call about shots fired inside of a home near E Covell Rd. and N Bryant Ave. in Edmond.
As authorities went inside the home, they found the bodies of 50-year-old Michael Logan Walker and 44-year-old Rachel May Walker. Both had been shot multiple times.
Officials say the couple’s 19-year-old son, Michael Elijah Walker, admitted to shooting and killing his parents. Walker was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
On Friday, Elijah Walker’s family was on hand in the courtroom as three witnesses took the stand during his preliminary hearing.
The family put on a united front in supports of Elijah.
“He suffers from delusions that caused him to commit this act,” Elijah’s sister, Ashten West, said. “It is our hope that as further evaluations are taken, the district attorney’s office will take that information into consideration and stop their efforts to punish my brother for an act he was not in control of.”
One of the witnesses that testified was Elijah’s 18-year-old brother, Isaiah, who was there the night of the shooting.
Isaiah said he woke up to gunshots and screaming before his mom told him to call 911.
Caller: He’s my brother and he shot my parents.
911 Operator: He shot your parents? Where are they?
Caller: My father is in his room on the floor and my mother is by the front door on the floor.
911 Operator: OK, are they breathing?
Caller: I do not believe they are.
Isaiah also said he was so flustered he couldn’t remember his own address.
When he finally spoke to his brother, Isaiah testified that Elijah claimed their parents worked for a secret society and were doing spiritual things to him.
When prosecutors asked if Isaiah was scared of his brother he answered no, saying he knows his brother loves him. He said if Elijah wanted to kill him, he would have done it already.
Two years before the shooting, Isaiah said Elijah shot a gun in the house, prompting his parents to send him to a mental treatment facility. Isaiah says his mother was worried that Elijah always resented her for that.
After the hearing, Elijah pleaded not guilty by reason of mental illness.
“We are all here in understanding of my brother’s illness,” his sister said. “We love him, we support him, we want what’s best for him. I know he was not in his right mind and has not been for many years.”