93.9 The Eagle – The News and Talk of Columbia, MO
A jury from western Missouri’s Clay County has been hearing emotional testimony Wednesday from a Columbia woman charged with killing her husband in 2017 in Montgomery County.
Lynlee Renick is charged with first degree murder for the death of her husband, Ben, a prominent snake breeder. The case was moved to Boone County on a change of venue, and the jury has been imported from Clay County due to extensive media coverage in mid-Missouri.
Defense attorneys have been hammering at the prosecution’s suggestion that money was a motive for Lynlee. She testified today that they had rare green Anacondas that would have been sold for $250,000, had her husband not been murdered.
Renick also testified that she intended to request a divorce from her husband in June 2017, and brought Michael Humphrey along. Lynlee testified today that she had no idea that Michael Humphrey had a gun. She broke down on the stand, saying that Humphrey is the one who shot and killed her husband in the snake barn in 2017.
Lynlee Renick’s attorney told jurors that Humphrey had used meth earlier that day.
Lynlee Renick testified that Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputies tested her hands for gun residue, after the murder.
She also says she felt threatened by Humphrey after the murder. Humphrey has already been convicted in the case, and testified Monday that Lynlee Renick shot and killed her husband that day.
Closing arguments could happen later today.
The case is generating national media coverage: Court TV has live coverage of the trial, and “Dateline NBC” also has a crew in the courtroom.
