Former American Idol contestant Caleb Flynn found guilty of murdering wife Ashley Flynn
He's to be sentenced in October
Former American Idol contestant Caleb Flynn has been found guilty of murdering his wife, Ashley Flynn, at their home in Ohio.
The 40-year-old, who was also a music pastor, was convicted on all nine counts he faced on Tuesday 29th September, including aggravated murder, murder, felony murder, felonious assault and tampering with evidence. Two misdemeanour counts of intimidation were dismissed earlier in the week following a motion from prosecutors.
Caleb had pleaded not guilty to all charges, and his sentencing has been set for 5th October where he could face life in prison without parole.
His wife, Ashley, was a 37-year-old substitute teacher and middle school volleyball coach, and was killed at the couple’s home in Tipp City, Ohio, on 16th February 2026. Caleb called 911 that morning and told the dispatcher someone had broken into the house and shot his wife. He was arrested and charged with her murder days later.
Prosecutors said he shot Ashley twice in the back of the head while she was asleep in bed, then staged the house to look like a break-in. The couple’s two daughters were in the home when police arrived. The gun used in the shooting has never been recovered.
During the trial, an FBI agent testified that she found no pry, kick or ram marks on the outside of the door that had supposedly been forced. Instead, there were gouge marks on the inside of the frame, which she said was not consistent with a forced entry.
Much of the trial centred on Caleb’s affair with Alleigha Botner, 24, whom he met when she was an intern at his church.
Alleigha testified over two days about the tens of thousands of messages the pair exchanged during a roughly 18-month affair. In texts read out in court, Caleb repeatedly wrote that he wanted his wife dead. In one message sent in February 2025, almost exactly a year before the killing, he wrote: “I need her to die, to cheat again, to leave.”
The night before Ashley was killed, he messaged Alleigha saying “It’s happening” and that he was “about to be free.” Alleigha told the court she understood this to mean he was going to ask for a divorce.
When asked how she feels about Caleb now, she told the court: “I hate him.” She was not charged in the case and said she was not offered anything in exchange for her testimony.
Caleb’s lawyers argued there was no proof he fired the gun, and said he was asleep in one of his daughters’ rooms when he heard the shots. They admitted the affair but said it did not make him a murderer, and suggested the loss of Alleigha’s phone and laptop weeks before the killing was suspicious. The defence did not call any witnesses.
In closing arguments, prosecutors said Caleb wanted out of his marriage but did not want to lose his daughters, his job at his wife’s family business or his position in the church. Miami County Prosecuting Attorney Paul Watkins told the jury: “He had a lawful way to leave, but he was too greedy.”
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