North Texas son who ‘viciously’ beat and killed his mom gets 50 years in prison
A 34-year-old North Texas man who injured his own face to claim self-defense and then killed his mother by “viciously” beating and strangling her has been sentenced to prison, the Collin County District Attorney’s Office said.
Robert Lee Timmons Jr. was sentenced to 50 years in prison for the “savage beating” and strangulation murder of his mother, Rene Timmons, the DA’s Office said in a news release Tuesday.
Mother’s murder discovered during welfare check
Plano police officers responded to a welfare-check call on May 16, 2024, from a co-worker after Rene Timmons failed to show up for work. She was found dead in her home, wrapped in a blanket with signs of having been brutally beaten, authorities said.
At the same time, a short distance away, Richardson police were investigating a report of a man unlawfully entering an apartment. That man, identified as Robert Timmons, told officers, “I just killed my mother.” Richardson officers immediately notified Plano police, who confirmed they were with his mother’s body, according to the release.
Robert Timmons was taken into custody on the spot, the release stated.
‘I know I am an evil person,’ killer confessed
During his interview with a homicide detective, Robert Timmons admitted that after getting angry, he attacked his mother with a metal pipe and a piece of wood, then strangled her.
“I know I am an evil person and it looks like I don’t regret what I did, but I’m too high to cry,” he told the detective. Timmons also admitted to regularly smoking methamphetamine, according to the release.
Robert Timmons had falsely accused his mother of assaulting him the day before the murder. Later, he told detectives that he fabricated the allegation and inflicted his own injury so he could claim self-defense, according to the release.
At the time of the murder, Robert Timmons was living with his mother, who had told others she wanted him to move out because of his violence, drug use, erratic behavior, and refusal to find work, the release stated.
Robert Timmons had been previously arrested on assault charges, including assault family violence/ impeding breath against his sister in Dallas County and assault/bodily injury against a male roommate in Collin County. He was prosecuted in both cases, according to the release.
“This was a horrific act of violence against the very person who gave him life. This case is also a grim reminder of how meth can fuel violence and destroy families.” District Attorney Greg Willis said in the release. “I’m grateful to our prosecutors and to the Plano and Richardson police for holding this dangerous man accountable and protecting our community from him ever again.”