Prosecution has rested in ‘Family Feud’ murder trial
Fox News’ Mike Tobin covers developments in the ‘Family Feud’ murder trial on ‘America’s Newsroom.’
An Illinois jury has found a former "Family Feud" contestant guilty in the murder of his estranged wife. Timothy Bliefnick was convicted on all charges in the murder of the accomplished nurse and fixture in her local church, amid a grueling divorce and custody battle.
Bliefnick, who lived about a mile away from his wife after they separated, was accused of breaking into Rebecca "Becky" Postle Bliefnick's home through a second-story window and shooting her 14 times.
Prosecutors alleged that he researched ways to commit the crime on Google, rode to her house on a bicycle, pried open the window with a crowbar and shot her dead.
Jury selection in the courthouse in Quincy took place May 22. The trial lasted just over a week, with a break for Memorial Day, before closing arguments Wednesday.
Becky Bliefnick pictured with her family on Halloween in 2018. Police said she was found shot to death in her Quincy, Illinois, home on Feb. 23, 2023. (Becky Bliefnick/Facebook)
The home of Tim Bliefnick, estranged husband to Rebecca Bliefnick, was raided on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 in Illinois. Rebecca was found shot to death in February. Tim Bliefnick was convicted of her murder on May 31, 2023 (Fox News Digital)
Postle Bliefnick's father found her body on Feb. 23, according to prosecutors.
Police arrested her husband on March 13, almost two weeks after they served a search warrant at his home.
In court, prosecutors revealed that investigators retrieved dozens of shell casings in the basement that the state police lab found were fired from the same gun as eight recovered from the crime scene.
Tim Bliefnick arrives to the wake for his estranged wife, Rebecca Bliefnick from Duker & Haugh Funeral Home in Quincy, Illinois on Thursday, March 2, 2023. Rebecca Bliefnick was found shot to death in her home in February, Tim Bliefnick was convicted of her murder on May 31, 2023. (Fox News Digital)
Police did not find the murder weapon, but Postle Bliefnick's handgun was missing, and Illinois State Police forensics expert Vickie Reels said it was among several weapon models that could have matched the recovered casings.
Tim Bliefnick was a college football star and contestant on the "Family Feud" game show. Now he's accused of fatally shooting his estranged wife, an award-winning nurse named Becky Bliefnick. (Adams County Sheriff's Office, Becky Bliefnick/Facebook)
Loved ones of Rebecca Bliefnick attend her funeral at St. Peter Church in Quincy, Illinois on Friday, March 3, 2023. Rebecca Bliefnick was found shot to death in her home in February. Tim Bliefnick was convicted of her murder on May 31, 2023 (Fox News Digital)
Postle Bliefnick's sister also testified last week that she received a text message that read, "If something ever happens to me, make sure the No. 1 person of interest is Tim."
"I am putting this in writing that I'm fearful he will somehow harm me, come after me, or will try to [do] something to me that takes me away from the kids or the kids away from me," Postle Bliefnick texted her sister, Sarah Reilly, according to the latter's testimony. "He already has lied multiple times to paint himself as a victim and me as the perpetrator when it is absolutely the other way around."
Tim Bliefnick is seen at his home on the day of Rebecca Bliefnick’s funeral on March 3, 2023 in Quincy, Illinois. Tim Bliefnick’s estranged wife, Rebecca, was found shot to death in February. (KR/Mega for Fox News Digital)
But Bliefnick's defense attorney, Casey Schnack, countered that there was not enough evidence to prove her client committed the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
The prosecution's case was "dripping with sympathy" and "lacking in any hard evidence," she said during her closing arguments.
Tim Bliefnick speaks with a deputy as investigators search his home on March 1, 2023. Police left without making any arrests but said they temporarily detained someone during the execution of a search warrant in connection with the shooting death of Bliefnick's estranged wife, Becky. (MuddyRiverNews.com )
Bill Postle and Bernadette Postle, parents of Rebecca Bliefnick, attend their daughter’s funeral at Calvary Cemetery in Quincy, Illinois on Friday, March 3, 2023. Rebecca Bliefnick was found shot to death in her home in February. (KR/Mega for Fox News Digital)
"The state has come up woefully short in their quest to prove Tim guilty beyond a reasonable doubt," she told the jurors, citing a lack of DNA evidence and surveillance video that she argued only showed an unidentifiable person in the area.
Postle Bliefnick was a fixture in the local community throughout her life, according to an online obituary.
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Tim Bliefnick leaves the wake for his estranged wife, Rebecca Bliefnick from Duker & Haugh Funeral Home in Quincy, Illinois on Thursday, March 2, 2023. Rebecca Bliefnick was found shot to death in her home in February. Tim Bliefnick was convicted of her murder on May 31, 2023 (Fox News Digital)
She graduated valedictorian from Quincy Notre Dame High School and went on to Quincy University.
She began her career in pharmaceuticals but finished nursing school in time for the start of the coronavirus pandemic. As a nurse, she received a Daisy Award for her service to patients.
