HOUSTON — Jury selection begins today in the second murder trial of a former Texas high school football coach accused of killing his pregnant wife two decades ago.
David Temple is on trail again for the 1999 murder of Belinda Temple, his wife who was eight months pregnant when she was killed.
Temple was the head football coach at Alief Hastings High School and Belinda was a teacher at Katy High School.
A jury found Temple guilty in 2007 after prosecutors said he killed Belinda with a shotgun blast to the back of the head. Temple was having an affair at the time Belinda was killed, and prosecutors said he did it because he wanted out of his marriage. Temple later married his mistress.
Temple said his wife was killed during a home invasion, and his defense attorneys pointed to a disgruntled student as the killer.
He served nine years in prison before an appeals court tossed out his conviction, citing instances where prosecutor Kelly Siegler withheld favorable evidence from the defense.
Temple, now 50, has been out on bond since December 2016.
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office hired a special prosecutor to re-examine the case and determine whether to bring charges against Temple again. District Attorney Kim Ogg recused herself from the case because members of her administration had ties to defending Temple.
The trial is scheduled to begin July 8.