Daniel Serafini: daniel serafini sentenced to life in prison without parole
Content warning: this story contains references to suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988. Former MLB pitcher daniel serafini was sentenced to life in prison without parole after a jury convicted him of first-degree murder and attempted murder.
Daniel Serafini sentencing details
Serafini was found guilty last July of first-degree murder and attempted murder, a verdict that followed a trial tied to a 2021 ambush at a home near Lake Tahoe. The attacks on Robert Spohr and Wendy Wood occurred four years before the verdict, and Serafini was arrested after an investigation that lasted for more than two years.
The ambush at Lake Tahoe
Prosecutors said Serafini ambushed Spohr and Wood at their home near Lake Tahoe in 2021. On the day of the attack, prosecutors alleged Serafini snuck into the house wearing a black hoodie and a white mask, carrying a hidden. 22 caliber gun, and waited while the couple were by the lake with their daughter, Erin Spohr, and Erin's two grandsons.
Victims and aftermath
Robert Spohr died from a single shot to the head during the ambush. Wendy Wood survived the shooting but needed extensive rehab in the aftermath. She later died by suicide a year after the attack. The context of financial support was raised at trial: Spohr and Wood had reportedly been financially supporting Serafini and their daughter, Erin Spohr, who filed for divorce last year.
Testimony, motive and reaction
Prosecutors alleged Serafini hated his in-laws and told friends he would offer $20, 000 to whomever killed them before deciding to do it himself. Samantha Scott, identified at trial as a family friend with whom Serafini was having an affair, testified against him as part of a deal in which she pleaded guilty to being an accessory.
Outside the Historic Auburn Courthouse following Serafini's sentencing Friday afternoon, Serafini's sister-in-law Adrienne Spohr reacted to the life term. "Dan Serafini executed my dad and left my mom to die, " Adrienne Spohr told reporters. "My mom fought with everything she could and did not let Dan Serafini win. Dan Serafini is finally being held accountable and will spend the rest of his life behind bars. "
Serafini's defense and background
Serafini had a request for a new trial rejected last month. He continued to insist on his innocence at the sentencing hearing, telling the court: "There was no DNA, no photos, no video, to link me to this crime, but because you don't like me, you found me guilty. This trial was a popularity contest. " He then offered what he called "condolences to the victims of this heinous crime. "
Serafini was a first-round draft pick for the Minnesota Twins and appeared in 102 Major League Baseball games from 1996-2007 for six different teams, finishing with a 6. 04 career ERA. He also played in leagues in Japan, Mexico and China, and represented Team Italy in the 2009 and 2013 World Baseball Classic.
In retirement, he was said to have lost a $14 million personal fortune through "a series of bad investments and a bitter divorce settlement" during a 2015 segment of the show "Bar Rescue. "
Authorities concluded the sequence that began with the 2021 ambush and the subsequent investigation led to a conviction last July and the life-without-parole sentence imposed at the recent hearing.
