On the morning of July 4, 2021, a party on the 2000 block of Hazel Street in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, ended with the fatal shooting of 28-year-old Calvin Buckner. Around 4 a.m., an argument involved Buckner and the girlfriend of another man at the party. When 39-year-old Leon Grimes intervened, the confrontation escalated and Grimes allegedly shot Buckner in the chest. Buckner was taken by ambulance to Jennie Stuart Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Officers found Buckner had a handgun in its holster when they arrived and spent several hours processing the scene.

Hopkinsville police named Leon Grimes a person of interest and arrested him on July 8, 2021, charging him with murder. At a preliminary hearing, a detective testified that witnesses identified Grimes as the shooter; Grimes said he had intervened but denied killing Buckner. The case was bound over to a Christian County grand jury and an indictment followed in September 2021. In September 2023 Grimes pleaded guilty to an amended charge and received consecutive sentences totaling 15 years; the court heard a victim impact statement from Buckner’s mother.

If anyone at the Hazel Street gathering or who knew Calvin has information that could clarify what happened that night, please share what you know.