Texas judge declares mistrial at sentencing of ex-coach guilty of killing wife in 1999

The family of a pregnant woman killed by her Texas high school football coach husband in 1999 will likely have to wait months until he’s sentenced — the latest turn in a murder case that’s already had one mistrial, media outlets reported.

A Harris County jury found David Temple guilty Tuesday of shooting his wife, Belinda, in 1999 at the couple’s house in Katy, Texas, according to KPRC.

On Friday, the jury couldn’t agree on sentencing for Temple, forcing the judge to declare a mistrial at the end of the month-long trial, according to KHOU. While the guilty ruling will remain, a new jury will have to convene to decide on a punishment, and that may not happen until spring, KPRC reported.

This is the latest twist in a case that’s lasted more than 20 years.

Temple previously was found guilty in 2007 and went to prison for nine years before an appeals court reversed the decision in 2016, citing “prosecutorial misconduct,” KPRC reported.

Prosecutors accused Temple of having an affair with a co-worker — whom he later married — and killing his wife to get out of their marriage, KHOU reported. His second wife filed for divorce just days after the retrial started, according to KHOU.

Temple is accused of shooting his wife Belinda with a shotgun after she returned home from buying soup for their child, then “staging a crime scene” of a burglary in January 1999, the Houston Chronicle reported. He told investigators his wife was killed while he was at the park and a store with their toddler son, the newspaper reported.

Defense attorneys for Temple argued that a timeline of events used during the trial didn’t allow him enough time to murder his wife, KRIV reported. His attorneys tried to pin the killing on a disgruntled teenage student at the high school where Belinda Temple was a teacher, the Houston Chronicle reported.

The jury deliberated for more than eight hours before returning with a guilty verdict, KTRK reported.

Jurors had deliberated since Tuesday before finally telling the judge they couldn’t reach a unanimous decision on sentencing, KRIV reported.

“When two jurors are not willing to budge at all, there is nothing more we can do,” the jury wrote, according to KRIV.

This story was originally published August 6, 2019 at 2:36 PM with the headline "Texas judge declares mistrial at sentencing of ex-coach guilty of killing wife in 1999."