Bio 

Royle John Kipp Jr., commonly reported as Roy Kipp, was born in 1956. Kipp’s first marriage ended in divorce in 1990 after domestic problems were reported in court records and news accounts. He later married Sandra “Sandy” Kipp, a hospital customer-service worker. They had a daughter together. By the late 1990s, Kipp’s law-enforcement career had ended after he tested positive for marijuana during a random drug test. He retired rather than be fired, and Florida later revoked his law-enforcement certification.

After leaving law enforcement, Kipp worked for an elevator company and spent part of the week away from his family for work. His marriage to Sandy Kipp deteriorated. According to trial reporting, prosecutors described him as controlling and jealous, while the defense portrayed the relationship as loving until he discovered her relationship with Collier County sheriff’s deputy Jeff Klein. Sandy Kipp eventually moved into a separate apartment and did not tell Kipp where she was living.

Murder Story

On May 20, 2000, Sandy Kipp and sheriff’s deputy Jeff Klein were shot and killed inside Sandy Kipp’s new apartment in Collier County, Florida. Sandy Kipp was 35 years old. Jeff Klein, also 35, was a Collier County sheriff’s deputy and a former co-worker of Royle Kipp. The shootings occurred after Sandy had moved out of the home she shared with Kipp.

Prosecutors argued that Kipp tracked his estranged wife to her apartment, looked inside, and saw her with Klein. They said he cut through a screened door, entered the apartment, and shot Klein repeatedly before shooting Sandy Kipp. A portable phone in dial mode was later found near Sandy’s body, which prosecutors used to argue that she had been trying to call for help.

The prosecution relied heavily on testimony from Kipp’s friend and former police officer Peter Lewkowicz. Lewkowicz testified that Kipp called him after the shootings and said he had shot two people. In another account, Lewkowicz said Kipp told him, “I waxed ’em.” Prosecutors also presented evidence that Kipp had suspected an affair and had previously said he would harm Klein if he confirmed it.

Kipp testified in his own defense. He claimed that he unexpectedly found Sandy and Klein together and fired only after Klein pointed a gun at him. He said Sandy was accidentally killed when she moved in front of him. No gun was recovered from Klein’s body, and prosecutors rejected the defense claim that officers had removed a weapon to protect Klein or make Kipp appear more culpable.

On March 7, 2002, a jury convicted Kipp of two counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary after less than three hours of deliberation. The case was tried in Charlotte County because of extensive publicity in Collier County. Kipp was sentenced to death in 2002