Erik Griffin Auditions For "Baby Hating Airline Passenger"

Transcript

Linley and Ben Renick first met in high school. They may not have been friends, but acquaintances. It wasn't until more than three years later, their paths crossed again on Facebook. By that time, Lindley had already had a baby and began her career as a massage therapist. Then, while working for his father on the farm, had also begun a career in the reptile business. When the two reconnected, they hit it off, and very soon a relationship began. In 2012, they welcomed their own child, a daughter. Two years later, they were married and three years later, Ben was dead. On June 8th, 2017, deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Department were called to Ben's business, Renick, reptile's Linley had called them just after 6:30 p.m. She said she had found her husband lying in a pool of blood dead. Lindley then called Ben's brother, Sam, who ran right over. Sam told officers that one of the reptiles may have gotten loose. It looked like a snake attack. Deputy Harley Hawes was one of the first officers on the scene. Prior to your arrival at Rennick Reptiles, were you given information that there was possibly a 500 pound anaconda on the loose? Yes, I was. So when you arrive, what is the first thing you do? The first thing we do is walk up to the structure. Of course, we make contact with a female outside that we later find out. When Lee Renick, she's hysterical. So we go into the building and we start searching for the snake that is allegedly on the loose. Eventually, they determined there wasn't a snake on the loose and that what they were dealing with wasn't some sort of accident. As I approached the body, we were selling the pretense that this was a snake attack, and so whenever it entered there, we came to the body. I removed the sheet from the foot to the head and then observed the body. I crouched down to take a closer look, and when I did this, I then saw some divots in the floor. I also saw some injury to the face that I would say was more consistent with not a snake injury, but a gunshot wound. And then I saw a shell casing on a shelf just above the decedents had been had been shot to death. According to prosecutors in Montgomery County, Missouri, it wasn't the first time Ben's life had been in danger. We've had this conversation about murder and think, how does that conversation wind up with you? Two actually attempting to kill Ben Reddick and she had gone over a couple of different, you know, possibilities, and it didn't really seem like any of those were likely. So she kind of suggested or brought it up that maybe she should poison him. Ben had been poisoned weeks earlier, but when that didn't kill him. Prosecutors said his killer developed another plan a plan that involved multiple people, a plan that apparently worked. Ben was dead. But the defense team in this case would later claim in court that their client was innocent. There is nothing more sad and more tragic than an innocent person being convicted of something they did not do by the time the trial was over, the jury would hear from all those involved, including the alleged killer. Would they be able to decide who was telling the truth? This is Gillian, and in partnership with Law and crime, you are listening to Court Junkie Episode 190. Investigators with the Missouri Highway Patrol arrived at the scene later that night. There were no signs of forced entry. No broken windows or doors. And it didn't appear as though anything had been taken. Ben's wife, Linley Renick, was there, and by all accounts, she was in hysterics. One investigator would later say in court that he witnessed her throwing up. Because she was present, Lynne Lee's hands were tested for gunshot residue. The tests were negative. The investigation ramped up over the next few days. Investigators interviewed friends, family members and neighbors from around the property. Eventually, the case seemed to go cold. No one was arrested and the police, despite interviewing everyone they could think of, reached a dead end after dead end. Investigator Nathaniel Schaefer found that there had been problems in Lynley and Ben's marriage. The two had opened a spa called Essentia in Columbia, Missouri. Lindley ran the business and it was failing. She was facing a lawsuit. Investigator Schaffer also discovered messages from Lynley on Facebook from just a couple of days before Ben's murder. Can you describe that that conversation, as you seen in this document, basically Ben is asking if it lonely, even like Son, she said, Yeah, she loves him. And she says that she feels unsafe and doesn't trust that he won't take his aggression out on her. And then he says he's never done anything to make her feel that way. It was a sentiment, however, that Lynne, business manager and friend Ashley Shah backed up when investigators spoke with her. She said Lindley told her that Ben had sexually assaulted her. She came to this bar one morning and said that she had woke up in the middle of the night and he was on top of her inside of her raping her. She was asleep. So we're talking about a month prior to June 8th. Yes. Investigators had their suspicions about Lynly, but they didn't have much to go on until about two years later when they got a tip that Lindley had been the shooter. They went back and interviewed Ashley Shah again. This time she asked for an attorney, and an immunity agreement was worked out. And that's when she really started talking. Ashley sat down with investigators and told them what she said Lindley had told her, what plan did when we report to you having come up with my Michael to kill her husband and that they were going to? I think it was originally going to happen in the morning and they were going to meet up. I will leave and then go to the facility, his business and kill him there. It kind of changed a little bit throughout the process. And so finally, a day is actually decided upon and it actually occurs. Correct? Correct. And that's June 8th, 2017. Yes, Lindley was charged with first degree murder in July 2020. She was released on house arrest and ordered to wear a GPS monitoring unit until her trial, which began in December 2021. In her opening statements, prosecutor Kelly King told the jury that Lynley had shot then eight times and that it wasn't the first time she had tried to kill him. She said Linley was the sole beneficiary of a million dollar life insurance policy on Ben and that she felt like she couldn't divorce him, then controlled their money and she feared he would get the kids. She told the jury that Linley and Ashley came up with a plan to poison Ben by putting crushed up Percocet pills in his protein shake. Ben got violently ill but didn't die, so they came up with Plan B, which was to go to Lindsay's ex-boyfriend, Michael Humphrey. Then, on June 8th, she said Michael in Lindley went to the reptile facility where Lindley killed him. That goes back to the back of this facility, where they have all have issues of eight times at least four of those shots around the back. She gets in the car with my covering to leave. They go back to Columbia. Michael Humphrey takes her back and following her up and he goes how she found him text messages. I hope you got OK. Come in tomorrow for another massage after this is all done. There she gets back to Montgomery County because now the school does call and somebody's got to pick up her children. She knows her husband is dead. She said Linley then picked up her two kids from school and took them to the reptile facility. She didn't take the kids inside, but she went in and after seeing Ben dead on the floor, she called 9-1-1. Prosecutor King said that as a trooper was looking through Lin Lee's phone, he saw text messages from her to Mike Humphrey and asked her who that was. Lin Li said she used to massage his mom. Then she changed her story and said he had reached out and wanted a massage. Prosecutor King told the jury that the case went cold for about two and a half years. Then in the beginning of 2020, they got a tip that Lindley was the shooter. And so they went back and re-interviewed Ashley Shah. Prosecutor King said Ashley did horrible things and was complicit in this murder, but she was the first one to talk and will testify as to what had happened. After Ashley told police about their attempts to poison Ben, they found text messages from Ben to Linley, referencing that he had been violently ill once they were able to corroborate parts of Ashley's story. They then had a case against Linley Renick. Prosecutor King said that a couple of weeks ago, Michael Humphrey said he wanted to cooperate, too. He is also complicit in this murder, she said. Microsoft is going to testify and tell you what happened in exchange for that instead of a life sentence without parole. He's going to be convicted of murder and second degree and serving a life sentence with parole. She said Michael's story was the same as Ashley's and that he handed over the gun to investigators. Lynne Lee's defense attorney, Timothy Hussman, said during his opening statements that nothing is more sad and tragic than an innocent person being convicted of something they didn't do. He told the jury that it's important to know the types of people Linley and Ben Resnick were. Linley was born in 1988 and grew up in a rural Missouri town. He said she needed to be surrounded by people and got into massage therapy. Before she was 20, she was a single mother after her boyfriend at the time went to jail. She had her baby on her own. He said Linley has never been a violent person that she's the furthest thing away from violence that a person can get. He also said Linley has zero proficiency or interest in guns. As for Ben Rudnick, he said he and Linley were married for about four years and had gotten together after Lindley left a toxic relationship with Michael Humphrey. He told the court that Linley admired Ben and thought he was amazing and good at everything he tried. Ben had started a reptile breeding company as a teenager and was one of the best in the world. Lindley was impressed by that, but he said as time went on, the problems between Lindley and Ben became severe. Ben is not a violent person by nature, but he is extremely close to her and she begins touching her and begins doing things against her will. While she's asleep and it comes from the fact that Ben wants things from her, that Melanie Radic does not want to get it. And so these things build and build and build until Leslie starts coming to a central spot with bruises on her arms. She discusses these problems with absolute shock. He said when Lee's life was falling apart, her business and marriage were both going under. She was overwhelmed and started to talk to her friend and business associate Ashley about it. Ashley gave her bad advice and Lindley started having affairs. He said Ashley eventually advised her to just go ask Ben for a separation, but she told Linley to take someone with her. They went through a list of people who would be good to go with her to confront him. Ashley shot her boyfriend. Ben does not like Ben. Ashley's boyfriend is not one to going to confront Ben at the snake the reptile house. So they're brainstorming, and they make the very, very unfortunate decision to ask Michael Humphrey to go with them, be ready to confront Ben about a divorce. He said what Linley didn't know is that since their breakup, Michael had graduated into a violent, meth addicted career criminal. He said he looked like the same old Michael Humphrey, but he wasn't. Michael agreed to stand there while Linley confronted Ben beforehand. Linley told him to come to the spa for a couple of massages, and he did. Hussman acknowledged that Lynley was being deceptive to bend at this point. She loved him and sent him loving texts. But in the back of her mind, she knew they weren't compatible. So that's what that's why there's all this conflict. She's not being deceptive, however, she is being deceptive about her going to separate the fact she's not planning a murder. She's planning a divorce. But he implied that Michael may have been planning something different. He said behind the scenes, Michael got a new cell phone the day prior to the murder and was making comments to his friend like, what do you do about somebody abusing their wife? How do you make it stop? So Michael Humphrey, unbeknownst to Andy Roddick, is making his own plans. He told the jury that we don't know what happened between Ben and Michael at the facility that day, while Lindley had briefly went outside to take out the trash. And it's not clear what's passes between Michael and Bang, but it's probably not good because Ben knows Larry is not being faithful and Michael knows Ben is abusing him. So what Barry thought of it was better being bang said something like, Oh it 111th boyfriends. Michael isn't like that. Oh, he must be the person who was abusing when something has gone wrong. When he walks in and she's in the corner, wringing their hands and staring at her shoes and swearing and trying to figure out what's going on. And a shock result when he runs outside, more shots rang out and she screamed so loud that a neighbor a half mile away. Hear my name, Mike, Scarlett hears her scream. Hersman said that what happened wasn't registering with Lindley. She left and went back home texting people on the way. He acknowledged that the text messages are damning, but said in her mind she was trying to convince herself that Ben was OK. About halfway home, she got a call from the school about Ben not having picked up the kids. She started to panic when she got back to the snake facility. She found Ben dead. Ben is in a pile of blood. He is one half of the blood pile on top of the blood so that whoever shot him shot him very fast or he could run or fight. What do you mean like that? They didn't miss, so they were very accurate. And then after they incapacitated him, they approached them and fired two shots directly down. And we know that he was on the floor are two dead. Its intentions were the bullet passed through Ben Body Shop floor. We call him dead. Then after two of these dead after he did, whoever found the net twice, they then have the presence of mind to crouch down the barrel of the gun up to his temple an inch or so away and fire up the last shot that basically. David, what happened with you? And what's interesting is you're going to hear testimony that when a gun is fired, there is a discharge of stood about that wall that comes from that area. And that would mean that if somebody was standing over a body and they shoot and there's no soot on the body, the gun would have to be 20 to 18 inches above the bar. And there's no gunpowder revenue on Ben's body, except for that shot to the head, which means that whoever was standing over Ben to deliver those two shots was holding the gun at least 18 to 20 inches away from the top of Ben's bottom. Then they ran against five foot three. Michael Humphrey is six foot four. He said the first investigator who took on the case was Trooper Fast. He called him a thorough, meticulous investigator. He said Trooper Fast found out pretty quickly about Linley and Michael and didn't buy Lynley story. They sat down for an interrogation, and he told her that they knew she was lying. But Lynley insisted she didn't do it and didn't know anything about it. Finally, she told them she just wanted a divorce. He said they didn't arrest her at that point because they didn't have enough information. Trooper Fast had a family tragedy and a new investigator, one he said had never investigated a case in his life automatically took over years past. Lindley then began a relationship with a man named Brandon Blackwell, who Hersman said was very possessive. One day, Brandon Linley and Ashley all met up. Ashley had just been interviewed by detectives, and she had told them that a few weeks prior to Ben's murder, they all drink a protein shake and got sick from it. She told them that Ben had been joking about it and saying Linley had tried to poison him. But Ashley told Linley and Brandon that she felt like the detectives didn't believe her and that they believed she and Lynley had poisoned Ben. Hersman said Brandon took that information and put it in the back of his mind for a rainy day. Lindley and Brandon's relationship then deteriorated, Linley took out an order of protection against him. He said Brandon violated the order 12 times and was arrested and released five times. While in jail. Troopers came and talked to him. They then went to interview Ashley again, and she was told that if she does not change her statement, she is going to be put through the ordeal of being accused of the most serious crime that is in our system. And I want to point out that what Trooper Schaffer does are three things. Tells her what to say or indicates that she should say something incriminating against them writing. He tells her that she will be punished if she does not say that. And he says and he doesn't even know if what he wants her to say is true. And I want you to keep in mind that when you tell somebody they are going to be accused of a crime that would work on anybody. So it's not like she's Bashar's caving in to the evidence against her or the weight of the evidence against her or, Hey, Ashley, we have you on video. If you went to Tallahassee, Florida, and pick somebody up and drove them to a police station and they would say this, or we're going to accuse you of a crime? Well, they would say that just to avoid having to hire an attorney, having to sit in jail and having to deal with the anxiety of possibly being falsely accused. And they know what they're doing. And that's what they were doing. Hersman said investigators then told Michael Humphrey that if he helps hammer Linley, they will make his drug charges go away. And so Michael said Linley did it, too. And investigators believed that was the further corroboration they needed. And so they're going to parade all these more bodies in front of you to say that this woman did this when really all of these people are just using facts that they learned through the course of being around this investigation? And they're using those facts to suggest which would apply equally to anybody. And they're using those facts to say she did it in order to get a benefit for themselves. He promised the jury that at the end, they would see why Lindley could not have done it. Ashley Shaw was one of the state's star witnesses against Linley Renick, and contrary to what the defense had said in their opening statements, she told the jury that it wasn't the first time Linley had tried to kill her husband. She knew because she said she helped her tell us how you began. She said, You've had this conversation about murdering Nick. How does that conversation wind up with you to actually attempting to kill Ben Reddick? She had gone over a couple of different, you know, possibilities, and it didn't really seem like any of those were likely. So she kind of suggested or brought it up that maybe she should poison him. And so what were some of these other possibilities scenarios that she went over with you, if you recall? She asked if I knew anyone that could get her a gun. I think that that's pretty much all trying to figure out if she knew someone that had a gun. So, so she asked you about if he knew anyone who had a gun. Yes. And what did you tell her? No. When asked why Ashley had tried to help her, she said she felt bad for her. It was a surreal situation, so it's kind of hard to explain what I was feeling at the time, but it didn't really seem when I talk about it now, obviously it seems it was real. And at that time, it didn't seem that way. Jim, did you believe her about this rape allegation? I did, yes. Did she make any other allegations about Ben physically, mentally abusing her anyway? Yes. What else did she tell you about then? She said that he was very mentally abusive. They would get in arguments a lot, and he was just really kind of dominate the situation and make her feel terrible or bad about different things. Did you ever see any signs of physical abuse? No. You know, no bruising on the lips. Black eyes. No, sir. When the poisoning didn't work, she said they needed a new plan. Lindley brought up asking her ex-boyfriend if he would help. What does she tell you about Michael Humphrey being her ex-boyfriend and why he might be somebody she should seek out to murder her husband, Ben? She said that she had a prior record of being in trouble, and so she thought maybe he would know someone or hung out with people that had records of being in trouble or, you know, history. So she thought maybe he would help her. They showed up at Michael's house, she said. At first they engaged in small talk, and Linley told him Ashley needed speakers hooked up. But once inside, the conversation became something else. And then and then at some point, after a small sort of ends, the conversation turns to what had just happened the night before. Yes, and again, he told the jury. As best you can recall specifically, what when Lee Reddick said to Michael Humphrey in your presence. She told him it didn't work, and she wanted to know why they discussed that. And then she asked him if he could help her. He asked why she wanted to kill her husband, and so she explained that he was raping her in the night and that they were having a lot of troubles. And then that's when she asked him if he could help her. I'm sorry. That's when she asked him if he could help her. And what exactly did she ask? Because she did she ask him to do something? Or she just say, Can I help? Can you help if he knew anyone that could help her? If he knew someone, they can kill Ben or knew in the way that she could do it? And what was his reaction to that? He was shocked by the whole situation, I think, and then he said that he would think about it. She said initially, Michael wasn't on board, but then he came in to the spa. How is it that you knew he was coming or did you know he was coming to the spa? Yes, she told me that he was going, OK. And when when did she tell you that? I believe it was that morning? I can't remember exactly. Did she tell you why he was coming to the spa that day? Yes, they're going to discuss further plans about what she asked him to do, according to Ashley, while Linley was with Michael. She sent Facebook messages to Ben, asking him to pick up the kids from school. Ashley said Linley then left her phone behind at the spa on purpose before leaving with Michael. And tell the jury, according to one way, what role her kids were going to play in the murder of her husband when they were supposed to pick the kids up, but she was going to spend that she wasn't feeling well. So then she was supposed to go pick the kids up. And if and why was that part of the plan? If he was supposed to go pick up the kids because she needed a reason for the school to call her and tell her that he didn't show up? And why wouldn't you pick up the kid because he wouldn't be alive anymore? So he was going to you're supposed to pick up the kids, but when he gets killed, he can't. The school is going to call her at the spa and say, Hey, they never picked up the kids crowd, and she's going to have what objection your honor leading. Jury overruled. And she was going to have one by being at the spa and alibi, I guess, or, yeah, alibi. That's a good word for it. Yeah. What about you? Were you going to have a role while they were gone? Or were you going to employ some sort of role in this, this murder? She asked me to text Ben from her phone and say that she wasn't feeling well. And did you text Ben from the phone saying that? No, why not? I got scared texts from her phone at all. You didn't communicate one time with Ben on the phone. Yes. On the computer. And how on the computer did you communicate with Ben this one time her Facebook, she logged into her Facebook and it was over. And so she they would messenger you some sort of messenger app on the Facebook. Yes. And when when in relationship to her being at the spa or not at the spa, did you send this message? It was right when it wasn't long after she left, she said. When Linley returned to the spa later, she and Ashley went to the shower room. And when you get back there with Leslie, what does she tell you or asked you to do to scrub her off and shower? Does she tell us what happened and what she said? She took off her clothes and she got on the shower, and she asked me to scrub her body and her hands really well, and she watched her whole body. And that's where we're close at when this process started. They were in the room where we were. She put them in a pile on. There was a little counter in there. Now, as you're doing this to somebody, come back into that area. Yes. Who? Michael Aubrey and when he comes back there? Can you tell us what conversation occurs between Michael Woodley and you if you're involved? Yes, he walks in and he says, Does she know or did you tell her? And they said, No, she doesn't know. And then he quickly left right after that. What is his attitude and demeanor like? He was very nervous and ready to go. They're kind of I don't run very well. So but it seemed out of the ordinary, very rushed. While they were in the shower room, Ashley said Linley asked her if she wanted to know what happened, and Ashley said sure. Then told her that Michael had killed Ben and that they then picked up as many shell casings as they could before leaving. What did she tell you about the gas situation, if you will? She said on the way to her house, the same facility on the way to where she lived. He didn't have gas in his car, so they had to stop, and she used her debit card to pay for his gas. And when she was describing that to you, what was her attitude about that? She was irritated that he would now gas his car because now there was a record of her card being used out on the edge of Columbia outside of Columbia. She said she had another conversation with Lynley about what happened. About a week later, this time, Lynley told her she had killed Ben. And how is it that the subject came up the second time a week later? It was just a general conversation, really. And then she said something along the lines of, I didn't think that I could do it. It was kind of a random statement. So you guys are in the car and she kind of boards this random. I didn't think I could do it now. Yes. After you heard this random statement, you know what she was referring to? Yes. OK. What was your what did you believe you're referring to to them killing her? What I thought was Michael killing Ben. And in response to the statement, Did you say something? Yes, I said, I thought you said that, that he did it and I didn't think that you said you did it. So you basically remembered the statement from the week before. Yes. Where she said Michael had done it. Yes. And so you say, Well, I thought you said Michael did. Yes. After you questioned her about that? Does she tell you some more information? Yes. What does she tell you? She said that Michael got too nervous or didn't want to do it, and so he handed her the gun and she actually killed him. And what did she? Tell you about actually killing her, and she said that she put the gun to his back and shot him several times. When Lee's attorney, Timothy Hussman, accused Ashley of making the whole thing up, he said during her police interview she was given a choice. Team Lynley or Team Missouri, he had her read from a transcript to it or read it. Sure, he said, the reason we're here and the reason that you're here is you've been implicated and being a part of Ben's death, and I want you to hear me out before you say anything further going. I said, OK. And he said, we've talked to the prosecutor and the prosecutor is willing if you are 100 percent honest and give information on homicide, that helps us solve it. Basically, he's willing to work with you. I'm sorry. Prosecutors willing like to help or prosecutor is willing if you are 100 percent honest and give information in this homicide, that helps us solve it. Basically, he's willing to work with you. What else does he say? Otherwise, you would be accessory to first degree murder and first degree accessory to it is the exact same charges first degree murder. Keep going. We're here because we have information that you helped plan and you actually took part in an attempt on Ben's life before Ben was actually killed. So I just want to put that out there and go back and let you be 100 percent honest. Keep going on what happened because we know a lot of what happened. Keep going. There are arrests are going to be made today. People are going to be in jail for first degree murder. We've got the warrants typed up and ready to be sent out. So basically now is the time here either continue. We continue. Yes, you're either on Team Langley or you're on Team Team Missouri and Loneliest Team is going to jail. Hussman said there was no plot that Ashley was telling the court whatever she could to stay out of jail, that would work on anybody. You could go down to downtown Columbia right now, grab a guy and say, If you don't join Team Missouri, we are going to put you through the ordeal of being charged with first degree murder. Maybe he gets off of me after five years of sitting in jail, but he would say anything to avoid that, right? I I don't know, sir. I'm sorry. I think you do know Ashley, because that's what's going on here, isn't it? That's what's going on here. But Ashley wasn't the only witness. The state of Missouri called to confirm the plot. Rachel Hunt, who was also given an immunity deal, not only worked at Essentia Spa too, but she lived with Ashley. Rachel told the jury that a few weeks before Ben was murdered, Ashley told her that she and Lynley had tried to poison Ben with pills after learning that she and one we had tried to kill Ben. What was your reaction? I was shocked and I told them, I don't want to be a part of anything. You told me to be part of it. Yes. Did you ask why? No. Were you ever told a lie? Lily didn't think that she would get the kids if she tried to divorce Ben. She said Lindley also told her that she and Michael Humphrey had a plan for June 8th. They were going to take a gun and go shoot Ben. And where did this conversation between you and when we take points out at the school? And I mean, we're in the spot. If you recall, most of the time we were talking out front on the side of a park kind of done from the front door. And was anybody else present? I'm sure Ashley was. And when you hear this, what is your reaction? I was shocked. Rachel said she went into work on June 8th, but the spa had no clients on the books to treat. She testified that it was to cover up the murder plans and represent when when we left to go commit this crime. Yes. When she left. Do you recall anything about how she was dressed or her appearance? I honestly don't remember. Rachel said she and Ashley wanted to protect themselves once when they left the spa with Michael that afternoon. She and Ashley laughed and ran errands so they could be seen on surveillance cameras. And why did she want to be on camera? They wanted to make sure that if anything happened, that they knew that we weren't with her. And when you say with her, you mean one way? Yes. And did you in fact do that? Yes. Do you remember about what time of day when we left? Seems like it was early afternoon afternoon. And do you remember about how long she was gone? It seems like it was a few hours and in one ship, were you present when she returned? Yes. And you mentioned Michael Humphrey. Did you ever see him when she left? And then when she returned? No looks to tell the jury what happened when we returned to the spa. When Leslie returned, I was told to go to the back. Ashley told me to go back there because Michael didn't know that I knew anything about it. So I went to the back room, which was our break room and the door was closed. And well, first off, started when she comes back and word to where do you see her going? What is she doing? She goes to our wet room and, you know, she's carrying anything. Or do you remember? I don't know. She goes to the wet room. Yes. And how is her demeanor when she arrives back at the store? Kind of, I guess, a little nervous, I guess, but worked up, I guess. Do you speak with her? No. Again, Lindsay's attorney questioned her about the timing of her claims. And you never told the police a word about this until you were given a proper immunity deal. Correct. Right. So you don't know anything, you don't know what's going on. You were questioned in the winter of 2018. That's correct. Yes. And what did you tell the police? Lennon's involvement was on that day? I said I didn't know anything. OK. And that was the truth, right? No, that wasn't the truth. Rachel insisted that now she was telling the truth. So you tell the police that money was not involved and then some time passes and you learn that Ashley Shah has been given a proper agreement that she has said when she's guilty and she calls you on the phone and tells you that very thin, correct? Yes. And so at that point, you and her have a conversation about what she told the police, correct? No, we didn't. Did you testify in a deposition on July 14th of 2020? Yes. Did you testify at that deposition that you talked to Ashley Shaw the day after she was arrested? Yes. So it wouldn't have come up in that conversation the day after Ashley Shah got arrested. What she told the police is that your testimony? The only thing that she said was they knew everything. So to be honest. That's all she said. That's all she said. The state called Michael Humphrey when he entered the courtroom, he looked much different than Ashley and Rachel. He was dressed in an orange Department of Corrections jumpsuit. And where are you currently incarcerated? Montgomery County Jail and Warren incarcerated there for the charges of murder. And you're not sure. And this conspiracy, Craig Michael told the court about his first interaction with Lindley Renick in over seven years. When they got there, well, what was your reaction to seeing this girlfriend of yours for the first time in six seven years? Definitely caught off guard yet? I'm sorry. Definitely caught off guard. I assume you're not surprised. Yeah. He said Linley and her friend Ashley asked him about speakers at first, but then they all went inside and the conversation turned darker. Lynley told them she had tried to poison her husband with pills inside of a shake, but that it didn't work. She said they now were trying to find someone to shoot him. When you heard this from your girlfriend after all these years, what was your reaction to that? Initially, I thought she was just exaggerating some, you know? Did did you respond? I told them that that was crazy. It was, you know, at some point during his conversation and when they explained to you or give you a reason why she tried to kill her husband and why she was now speaking out somebody to to shoot him. She said that there was different physical and sexual abuse going on you right breaking. And, you know, did she go into detail with you a little bit? What did she tell you why? And one thing was that he had climbed on top of her horse, and so far in the middle of the night, another one was that she woke up two fingers. I don't know how was, and I know it's unpleasant. We don't know you, but go ahead and use your exact words if you remember to her being fingered and she was trying to say no to it. Did she describe any other physical or emotional abuse during this conversation or just that they would they would have different fights around the kids that they would kind of turn physical? I mean, Pushkov kind of. And as a result of being there, then they say, now that we're not only looking for somebody to shoot him, but they ask something specific as usual, not at that time. They just was generalizing that they wanted to try to find somebody to shoot him. And then you give him any advice with respect to that. Told him I was not not going to be a part of that. Michael said a few days later, he decided to go to Lynn Lee's work and give her his handgun. Why did you want to take that gun to her own? From what she was describing to me, I thought she could use it in a case of like if she only had that option left, it would be self-defense because she said she couldn't leave there. So so you go up there with with with the gun. Yeah, it is the gun for carry on with it, and it's loaded. And so when you say it's loaded, it's got a magazine for ammunition and magazines, that correct is around and her. Yes. So all you got to do is go back. You got it. He said Ashley checked him in for a massage and took him back to a room. Linley then joined him to talk for a second. I gave her that explain to her that in the case of self-defense, this is, you know, for as long as you need it, you can have it. And she said at that point, she didn't know if she could do something like that. Put it up on top of there. I didn't get a full bar of her body massage, rather. And that was pretty much that day. The two stayed in contact over the next few days. One of those days, Lindley and Ashley, helped Michael when his car broke down. Then Linley showed up at his house without Ashley, according to Michael. It was then that she asked him to help her kill Ben, telling him she would make it worth his time. She told him she and Ben had been fighting when he refused. Lindley then asked if he would at least go with her so that she could safely get items from the house so she could leave. Then Michael said he agreed to that. On June 8th, Michael arrived at the spa, Linley came directly out with just her purse. He saw no sign of the gun he had blundered her just days before. On the way to rennick reptiles. He had to stop for gas. When you when you discovered you had this huge issue, what is one Willie's reaction? A little cutout in the say why not? Then she just said, I'll tell you why she was upset about you not having people ever tell me now. But she was all put off that she had stop, right? Who paid for fuel her debit card when they arrived at the snake facility and was taking out the trash? Lynley lied and said Michael was there to look at the snakes. Then she took the trash from Ben, and the two men walked inside the building. He goes over to St. Anne's on the left hand side of the walkway. Through their washes, his hands turns and then goes down the main walkway. They're talking about all the different types of snakes I have. I don't know nothing about snakes over at the time, and he's walking down through there and he gets towards basically the end of it there. She comes in the door, walks right past me. I'm figuring she's going to go down there and talk to her husband. And if she does this, does she say anything to you, Robyn? No, no, please. Do you see anything in her hand at that time? No. Well, now let me ask you this were you paying attention or. I really wasn't. I was looking at a rack for a lot of snakes. OK, tell us what happens next? So I guess I was looking for a whole lot of snakes. And then I heard a shark come out, which inside there was extremely loud. So I kind of ducked a little bit. I looked down through there and she was at the end of a corridor or whatever you want to call it. I was like this with the gun. And then did you say you heard more shots as I turned and went out the door? I thought two to three more. And then another one or two after I was outside. You weren't kind. I was not. But you terps. Would it be fair to say you heard several more after that initial shot? Right. But you turned and ran out the door. Correct. According to Michael, Linley, pulled the trigger all eight times. Two years after police had spoken to Ashley Shaw and Rachel Hunt, they revisited Michael Humphrey. At that point, he had already been in more trouble for drugs. But in October of 2021, he led law enforcement to the gun that he said had killed Ben Renick back when you had this relationship with her. Did you guys ever did you ever have an occasion to to shoot firearms with her? Yeah, we had been out to the gun range a few different times. A few times. Yeah. And what kind of do you guys shoot when you're out there? I had a Springfield Armory 40 caliber actually serious. And did you find that one or two you were together? Yeah. And is she far away? Yeah, she's in Cairo. I look over. She's kind of anything only to me, which is smaller, right? Right. She was having trouble handling that weapon. No. Jason Crafton with the Missouri State Crime Lab analyzed the gun and compared it with five casings found at the scene. Were you able to based on reasonable scientific certainty, determine make a determination, whether any one or all or any number of those cartridge casings that are part of this case, those five were fired from that firearm that is state's Exhibit 114. Yes, I did make a finding. And can you tell the jury what that finding was that all five of the cartridge cases were fired in this particular pistol? The defense only had a couple of questions for him. Sir, you work at the crime lab. That's correct. In Jefferson City. Correct. And your involvement in this case was just a test that's going to make sure certain bullets were fired on to correct the bullets in the cartridge cases. OK? Is that correct? Yes. OK, so you're not here to testify about any other aspect of this case, right? That's correct. OK. You don't know who fired that gun, right? No, I don't know. Nothing greater than. According to the state, Lyn Lee's motive was a financial one. Their next financial adviser, Lindsay Curva, told the jury about the life insurance policy. So at the time of Burns death on June eight, 2017, his receipt of this insurance policy was that when we ran and only when let me read it was to receive a million dollars correct. This insurance policy wasn't in or part of any trust that been made here him correct. It was separate and distinct. Yes, she told the court that she is sure that Lindley knew she was the beneficiary and met with her and ben earlier that same year in my office, and we went through what we call a summary of accounts, which just indicates all the investments and insurance policies under my management and that was listed. And this is face to face correct, not use all these things we got to use now. No prospective across the table, you explained to her or you just explained to this jury. Yeah, to both of them just how everything was set up. Yes, but Lynne Lee's attorney claimed the money would go into the trust set up for Ben's children. And he pointed out that Lindley didn't receive any of the benefits after Ben's death. Now he said no. OK, and even if she's acquitted in this trial, she's still not going to take the life insurance money. Honestly, I don't know the answer to that question. OK. On Redirect, the prosecutor asked if she's familiar with the slayer's statute, and she said yes. And what is the Slayer's statute in Missouri that if you are, I believe, found guilty of harming the individual, you cannot benefit from that person's death financially. You kill somebody. And you're intent. You're the beneficiary. You don't get the money correct. And so in this case, Mr. Rennick under the law is not entitled to that money. Correct. And there was litigation involving her children where that money should go. But she, at the time of Ben's death, was entitled to it as long as she didn't kill. Correct. I don't have the question briefly. Are you? Didn't Leslie Resnick voluntarily waive any right to life insurance? I believe eventually she did OK by eventually. That's a yes, right? Yes. So she's she voluntarily agreed to not get any of the million dollars from that life insurance. Yes. The prosecution then rested their case. Can you describe to this jury a little bit about Wendy's personality? She's quiet, meek, a great mother wife. Her family was everything. The defense began by calling Lynley rednecks best friends since first grade Brittany Bishop. Would you say she was a creative person? Very creative. Would you describe Lindsay as conflict avoidance? Definitely. Oh, he's going. Yeah. In her personal life, when you say Lily, it's more of a leader or a follower in her personal life. More of a follower. Now he's friends with Leslie Sense, I think he said first grade. Have you ever seen her handle? No. Have you ever known her to be like, No. Britney recalled first hearing about Ben's death. My mother received a phone call from her co-worker that there had gone ahead. Something had gone over the scanner, that there was a snake attack in New Florence, Missouri, and the only person she could think of was Ben because she knew that, you know, my best friend's husband read snakes. How what did you do? My mom called me to tell me she received that news and said I should get a hold of them, so I called only right away. Describe how many sounded well when she answered the phone, she was in hysterics. Did she say anything, she said it's been, it's been. I asked her, What do you want me to do? Where are you? She said she was at home. I said, OK, I'm coming. So what did you do next? I drove from my house to my parents. My dad then drove me from their house in Wellsville to lend lease property and new forms. When you got to the Reddick's property, what did you see? Cops everywhere and an ambulance and lonely sitting in the back of the ambulance? Was anyone with her? Maybe a medical personnel, maybe like an Ian A.. Did she appear to be in shock? Yes, she was in hysterics. Did you stay with me pretty much the entire night? Yes. Britney testified that she took care of Linley after Ben's murder. She told the jury she stayed with her for a month. Tell the jury what she was like. She was a wreck. She acted as though her whole world fell apart, and it just happened so much. She was a wreck. Was she eating and drinking? We were having a hard time getting her to eat and drink. We had to force it on her. Are you married America? If she was ever hospitalized? I took her to the hospital once after a news article had gone on stating that Ben had been shot and he she went into shock and had a panic attack and I had to take her to the emergency room. Despite being Lindsay's best friend, she admitted Linley had lied to her. Now I want to be clear about something with the jury and Britney. Did Willie ever tell you the full story about what had happened the day that night? No, she lied. Yes. Do you think she did that? Because if she had told you what would happen, you would have told her she was being stupid? Absolutely. And she never told you about the affair. No. But despite not knowing Lindsay's darkest secrets, Britney was convinced her best friend was innocent. Have you spoken with anyone from the highway before? Yes. Did they? Did you tell them that you didn't think when we put our date? That's correct. After calling another friend of Lendlease, the defense called her father, Lindell, to the stand. Have you ever known your daughter to be violent? No, no. Opposite. What do you mean? You mentioned growing up. I didn't have any experience with guns. No. Have you ever seen her shoot it? Yes. OK, when was that? When she was a young girl? I brought my 22 out because I only had one gun and and we lived in the country and I had her shoe and a brush pile. Her and her sister, both on one of the released boys, feel a gun. And that's the only time I know if she's held a gun and that was a too long rifle. It was not a pistol. And that doesn't seem to spark a lifelong interest in guns in her. No, no. He was asked what he thought about Linley and Ben's relationship. I thought they had a perfect relationship. So is it safe to say that your daughter didn't tell you when she went out and had affairs with you? Lindell described his daughter as being blank after the murder. As for Lynne Lee's relationship with Brandon Blackwell after Ben had been killed, he said it wasn't healthy. Did you ever have the occasion to call the police on Brandon LaFell? Yes, ma'am. Why was that? Because he would not let my daughter and my grandkids out of their house. He had them pinned. I was on the phone with my grandson, and he said, Papa Brandon won't let us let mama leave. Do I need to continue? Yes, please. So I was like, I'm going to call the sheriff's department and. He said, Oh, it's OK, he's letting us leave now and now and then the next thing he says, well, now he's not. And about the third time, he said he's not as like, I'm calling a police department right now. And then I heard Mary say, Oh, no, we're we're outside now. We're coming to your house, purple dead. When we have the kids, eventually make it to your house. Yes. And we did call the sheriff's department and they did come on. They make a report. The next several witnesses also spoke about this relationship, but the jury didn't get to hear them. The defense questioned multiple deputies from Boone County, Brandon Blackwell's mom and a domestic violence advocate. The advocate, Lynette Judo's, told the judge that Brandon had threatened Linley, an order of protection was issued to protect her. And he said if she didn't drop it, he would tell law enforcement that she confessed to killing Ben. Glenn, were you ever interviewed by Corporal Devin Foust of the Missouri Highway Patrol? No. Were you ever ever interviewed by Trooper Nathaniel Schaffer of the Highway Patrol? No, I was not. Were you ever interviewed by anyone from the Highway Patrol? No, I was not. Were you ever interviewed by anyone from the prosecutor's office? No, wasn't. Nobody else seemed to be interested in Brandon Blackwell's threats. No. Brandon's mother, Gina Fowler, told the judge about a phone call from jail with her son. During the call, Brandon told her that Lindley was going to jail and that he was going to get custody of the child the two had had after Ben's murder. The judge ruled that all of this testimony was hearsay because Brandon Blackwell refused to testify without taking the Fifth Amendment, so the jury never heard any of these witnesses. But there was one more witness the jury would get to hear Lindley running. When Linley Renick took the stand, she discussed her earlier relationship with Michael Humphrey before she was ever involved with Ben. How long did you two date on and off for? Maybe about a year? Probably, maybe less than that, but it was really on and off. So would you characterize your relationship with Michael Humphrey as a healthy relationship? No. All right. What was the main problem in that relationship? Drug addiction on his part? Both. Had you been addicted? What? I guess I should say. Did you use drugs? I did. So I became incredibly addicted to prescription pain pills. And for probably, I don't know, four or five months. And you know, our relationship was always just very toxic, but that definitely didn't make it any better. He was also taking and, you know, just on the side selling prescription painkillers, which is it was just a very co-dependent relationship. She said one day she realized she had no recollection of dropping her son off at day care or driving to work or anything she had done that morning. It scared her. And so she called her dad and told them she and her son needed to stay with him. She eventually got all of her stuff and officially moved in with her dad. And did you eventually become sober from painkillers? Yeah, I mean, I just quit. It was a very rough weekend, but I was done. After talking about her prior relationship with Michael, she then told the jury about reconnecting with Ben. They hit it off after catching up on Facebook and started dating, then got married, Linley admitted to having affairs. There were three altogether. She also talked about her marriage breaking down. She said she knew it was over when Ben wanted her to give him more attention than she gave to her children. That's not up for question for me, and that's not up for debate. And so when he started telling me that they would be fine and it would be OK if we were at the facility and working and I wasn't, you know, I didn't just instantly get home and rush to them like it wasn't going to damage them. And once you start, I've kind of started kind of trying to drive that wedge and bringing in that like, it was wrong of me to want to spend time with them or see them over him, and I will always focus on them above anybody else. With her marriage breaking down, Linley told the court that she discussed getting a divorce with Ashley, not murder. Did you ever talk with Ashley about divorce at the start? Yeah. Now I want to be clear for the jury. When you realize your marriage to Ben was over. Were you and Ashley sitting at the front desk of the spa in front of five to 30 other people chatting about how you wanted them dead? No. What were you telling Ashley? I was just talking to her and you know, we were both conversing back and forth about like, this is a disaster. And I don't know if there's any recovering from this and coming back and I'm checked out. I I can't even bring myself to, you know, pretend to engage and be interested in these conversations and what's going on anymore. Like, I'm not here in this marriage anymore. So you were talking about divorce? Yes. When Lee's attorney then asked her about the alleged poisoning, Ashley had described grinding up Percocets into a protein shake. But Lynn Lee's version of events was quite different. Did you or Ashley Shaw ever try to poison Ben? No. Was there an incident with a protein shake? Yes. All right. Tell the jury what actually happened, Ali. We get people that bring in stuff for us to try all the time, whether it's, you know, health food products or just buying wellness products. It's pretty common for us to get energy drinks, you know, protein shakes or protein bars. The thrive stuff, you know, that's a common one. But sorry to interrupt you. But is that because the people that are offering them are hoping that you might pick up the product and sell them at the spa? Yeah. So we sold retail and any products that we used and services we would sell up at the front. And so there were people coming in all of the time wanting us to either become distributors for them or to put their products up for sale in the front. And so one of the clients that had been in one day had left some samples of some, you know, protein drinks that she had for I don't know if it was an M., but a company that she had. And so we just all took a couple and dried them. Did you try the protein shake? Yes. Did you get sick? Yes. How sick? I was violently ill. I Ben was in our bathroom next to our bedroom the whole night, and we had another bathroom on the opposite side of the house, like in between. And so I was in that bathroom set up all night. Linley said she spoke to Ashley about how to leave Ben. Ben was just kind of escalating to being more and more controlling. And so Ashley's concern was that one that I would just never go through with it, that I wouldn't, you know, confront him and I would just, you know, she said. She said, you're not like, you're not going to do it. I know what's going to happen. This is going to cause you're going to go back to work at Ryder Cup titles with Ben and just be under his thumb again. And then you're never going to leave and you are going to be stuck in that marriage forever. And I mean, she was definitely right. Like, I just, yeah, anyway. So she then obviously after I came into work and she had, you know, seen bruises on my arm from where, but it grabbed me and like, I bruise really easily. So you know what? It is, what it is. But she was concerned that since Ben was getting so much more aggressive that if I went by myself and then just flipped out that I would get hurt and she took. Want me to go alone. She said Ashley offered to go with her, but her son's father didn't like that idea. It was then that Michael Humphrey's name came up and so they tracked him down. The three of them shared some small talk, and then the conversation turned more serious. And then so obviously, he's like the like, why are you? How did you end up here? Why are you here? And you know, Ashley and I just kind of like sighed, looked at each other and took a deep breath and let him know that, you know, my marriage was really just kind of falling apart and that I wanted to go and grab some of my clothes and things for the kids and I. But that I didn't really feel comfortable going by myself, and I was wondering if he would be able to go with me just to kind of be there for moral support and make sure that, you know, nothing really happened. And then Ashley let him know what her concerns were with Ben, you know, just being more aggressive and argumentative and how she really wanted to go with me. But her boyfriend wouldn't let her so. And what did Michael say? He said he was like, Yeah, that's not a problem, he said. That's the least I can do to help you out. He said, You know, I actually just got done helping another friend of mine, you know, move out from a similar situation and joked about how it might just be that time of year. So she said at no point did she ever say she wanted been dead or ask Michael to kill him. On June 8th, 2017, she said she woke up, took the kids to school and headed to the spa for work. She and Ben texted throughout the day. She agreed she was affectionate, said I love you. And sent him nude photos of herself. Her attorney asked why she would do that if she wanted to divorce him, and she said she would do stuff like that to diffuse the situations, and she wanted him to be in a good mood when she went to talk to him. She agreed she was also messaging with Michael that day. She said they had planned for Michael to come pick her up and go with her to talk to Ben. She described what happened when they arrived. She said Ben was surprised to see her, let alone see her with someone else. She said she panicked and told him that Michael was a friend of hers who wanted to buy some snakes. She then took the trash bags Ben had been holding while Ben and Michael went into the facility. Did you have a gun with you at that time? No. Were you aware that Michael had a gun with him? No. Had you seen it on the car ride there? No. Did you see it in his hands or anything at that time? No. She said she was frantically trying to figure out how to tell Ben why she was really there was really feeling like I wasn't even going to really be able to tell him and like, I need to be fully prepared, just like Michael's going to have a snake now. And to be clear for the jury, why were you really there to ask Ben for a divorce? You weren't going to kill Ben. No, you weren't there for Michael to kill Ben. No. And you're thinking, I don't even know if I can go through with this. Michael might actually have to buy a snake. Yes. When she walked into the facility, she said Ben and Michael were at the sink, washing their hands. Normal protocol before handling snakes. And then they walked towards the baby snakes. I walked in, walked down the aisle and I walked up behind Michael. Ben was back around the corner and Michael was standing kind of the way that the aisles are set up. There's just a small space to walk through to get to where Ben was. So Michael was standing right there. And I walked up right, right behind Michael. I'm sorry. And then Michael turned around and I saw a gun in his hands. And then I heard shots rang out and I screamed and I ran outside. And then I heard more shots go off and everything just went numb. And I remember staring at the trees. And then Michael running out of the facility and pushing me towards the car and telling me, we have to go and get in the car. We have to go now. Did you have any idea? What did you know? Michael had a gun? No. Did you have any idea he was going to pull out that gun and use it to shoot then? No. She said Michael then drove her to the spa. Once there, she said, Ashley took over. Ashley, brought her to the shower room and scrubbed her down. And then I remember Michael coming to the door and pointing at me and telling me, Don't tell her a f**king thing. And Ashley turned around and said, she's going to tell me everything. And then she walked out of the room and in the hallway with Michael for a little bit, and then she came back in turn the water off and get a towel and dry me off and helped me into my clothes and shoes. Lynne Lee's attorney asked her about her interactions with law enforcement. Lynley admitted she lied to them repeatedly. Were you nervous when they trusted your hands for gunshot residue? Not because they tested my hands for gunshot residue, but I mean, I was just gone and trying to just breathe through the whole thing. Clearly, I think the question we're all wondering is why didn't you come clean to the police that night? Why didn't you tell them that you had been there at the facility and Michael Humphrey had shot your husband? I didn't want to believe it. I didn't want to face it. And when I came in after Sam had turned Ben over and said that he was still alive, his face just looked like he had been beaten so badly. And I was just really lost on what actually did happen because I know I saw a gun and I heard it, but now my husband looks like he's just been beat. And I asked the officers what happened. They said they didn't know, and I just didn't tell them anything. Do you regret the. Yes. Her lies continued for over the next two years. At one point, Lynley said she told Ashley she wanted to tell the police the truth. But Ashley, along with Lynne Lee's new boyfriend, Brandon Blackwell, talked her out of it. Linley told the jury about a fight she and Brandon had gotten into during the fight, she said Brandon threatened to accuse her of murder if she didn't allow him access to their child's. Ultimately, after another incident on September 28th, 2019, Linley filed for an order of protection against him in the order. Lynley wrote that he planned to accuse her of Ben's murder. Lily, why did you tell a court? Why would you tip off a court? Hey, my boyfriend or ex-boyfriend is going to accuse me of murder because he was threatening to accuse me of murder? Were you afraid? Were you afraid of anybody knowing that? No. Because you hadn't killed them, right? Correct. If you had actually committed this murder, would you have been telling police officers and court officers that Brandon had information on it? No. Uncross the prosecution questioned her actions after the murder, claiming that her calls and messages to Michael were, in fact, a plan to plot her husband's death. While she admitted they could fit that theory, it wasn't the truth. At 5:15, you test the that are correct. Yes, this is where you start texting her, saying I'm going to be a little late. Yes. And these are all consistent, even though you disagree. But they're consistent with you trying to cover up your involvement in this murder. Are they not? No, they're not so sure that I wasn't trying to cover up any murder. I'm not asking you if you were because you said you weren't. I'm asking you if they're consistent with the state's theory that you were involved in covering up this murder. Yes, they're consistent with your theory. The state had charged Lindley with first degree murder. The defense, of course, was saying Lindley was absolutely innocent, but neither would get their desired outcome. On December 8th, 2021, after about six hours of deliberations, the jury returned with a verdict. They found Lindley guilty of second degree murder and armed criminal action. The jury recommended 13 years for the murder charge and three years for the armed criminal action. Judge Kevin Crane, whose name you may recognize from the Ryan Ferguson case, sentenced Lindley Renick to 16 years as required by law. And that's all for this episode. As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts about this case. Let me know by joining the conversation on Instagram at Court Junkie, by tweeting me at Court Junkie Pod or by emailing me at podcast at Court Junkie AECOM. This episode was researched and written by Polly Kotowski, with additions by me, Jillian Jalali, to hear these episodes without the ads and to hear additional court junkie bonus episodes. Check out my Patreon options at Court Junkie.com/ support. Thanks again for listening. Until next time.