David Temple Came Home to Find His Pregnant Wife Murdered — Was He Involved in Her Death?

According to ABC News, in a frantic call to 911 on the evening of Jan. 11, 1999, David Temple was told by the operator that he should administer CPR to his unconscious wife Belinda Temple. The scene in the bedroom they shared was chaotic. Belinda was lying on the floor of their closet covered in blood. In what could double as a line from a horror movie, Temple screamed, "I can't ... her head's just gone."

When police arrived on the scene, it looked like an open-and-shut case. Sargeant Dean Holtke was the first officer to arrive and as he told ABC News, "It looked just like a burglary." A window pane on the back door was punched through, and the house was in disarray. However, nothing could prepare Holtke or other members of law enforcement for the site of Belinda's nearly eight-month pregnant body. Her husband was distraught, but was it all an act? Where is David Temple now? Here's what we know.

In April 2023, Belinda's brother Brian Lucas was in court when Temple was sentenced to life in prison, reported ABC 13. Lucas told Temple, "You are despicable." He continued, "I want you to think about this every day for the rest of your life in prison. You completely ruined our family, you ruined your family. You deprived that. Nobody else deprived that, none of these jurors, you made that decision." Temple is serving his time at the Alfred D. Hughes Unit in Gatesville, Texas.

Temple was convicted in March 2023, but that conviction led to a mistrial. In August 2019, a different "jury spent 20 hours trying to come up with a sentence, but were deadlocked in the end." Temple remained in prison without a sentence. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed back his second sentencing to April 2023. In the meantime, Belinda's father Tom Lucas told ABC 13 that he couldn't find peace until this was done. "A blast from a shot gun killed Belinda and the baby. It's something that just eats me up," he said.

When police investigated Temple, they discovered he had an airtight alibi said ABC News. He told authorities that he was at the Home Depot and Brookshire Brothers around the time Belinda was killed. Surveillance footage supported his claims. Despite that, friends told police stories that suggested Temple and Belinda weren't happy in their marriage.

Marianne Norwood, Belinda's friend, told investigators that Temple was very controlling. If he didn't like something Belinda was doing, she would stop. Temple coached football at the local high school in Katy, Texas, and one of his coworkers later testified that he frequented "happy hours, bars, and strip clubs." The most damning motive came in the form of a woman Temple was having an affair with.

Heather Scott also worked with Temple and their affair started somewhat before Belinda was murdered. Tara Engler, Scott's roommate, testified she "would see him a little more often, and I think a couple of times he came over to our townhouse." While an affair is often a reason for murder, "police could not pin David Temple to the murder, and the medical examiner could not pinpoint the time of death," per ABC News.

Two years after Belinda died, Temple and Scott were married. Two years after that, Temple was arrested and went to trial in October 2007. Lab results from the FBI crime lab showed the gunshot residue found on Belinda's clothing she was wearing at the time of her death, matched gunshot residue on Temple's clothing. Sadly this evidence was tossed out when Temple's attorneys argued that gunshot residue from a shooting range next door could have compromised the lab's ventilation system.

Temple was found guilty and although that conviction was overturned when it was discovered information was withheld from his defense team, he was once again found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. Scott divorced Temple during his second trial.