Former American Idol contestant Caleb Flynn has been found guilty of murdering his wife, Ashley Flynn. The 40-year-old now faces up to life in prison without the possibility of parole, with his sentencing hearing scheduled for October 5.
Flynn sobbed in court when the jury in his murder trial reached its verdict on Tuesday, September 29. He was found guilty of all nine charges against him, including one count of aggravated murder, three counts of murder, two counts of felonious assault, and three counts of tampering with evidence.
Prosecution case and evidence
Prosecutors alleged Flynn killed his 37-year-old wife by shooting her twice in the back of the head while their children slept next door, following an affair. Flynn had pleaded not guilty to the charges, claiming an intruder killed his wife during a burglary.
Ashley was shot twice in the back of her head while asleep in bed in their residence in Tipp City, Ohio, on February 16. The couple shared two daughters, who were asleep in the house at the time of the crime.
Flynn's lawyers claimed he was asleep when the shooting occurred and woke to the sound of gunshots while in their daughter Ava's room. Prosecutors said that hours before Flynn called 911, he had texted his former mistress, "I choose you. I'm free. Actions will come tomorrow."
Mistress testimony
Former mistress Alleigha Botner testified in court for over two days. The 24-year-old said Flynn told her he intended to talk to Ashley about divorce on February 16, and she believed his phrasing "Actions will come tomorrow" referred to that.
When Botner learned of Ashley's death, she told the court, "My heart started pounding. In my mind, it seemed like too much of a coincidence that the day he's divorcing her, she's just dead all of a sudden." She stated she had once thought she loved Caleb, but when asked to label her feelings now, she replied, "I hate him," explaining, "Because I believe that he murdered his wife."
Botner testified she met Flynn in 2022 while interning at their church, and their sexual relationship lasted about a year, starting in May 2024. She noted she knew he was married. She said Flynn regularly voiced that he wanted Ashley "gone" or "dead," using derogatory terms for her.
Text messages and impact
Botner read some of their over 100,000 text message exchanges, in which Caleb expressed wanting Ashley dead. One text from August 2025 read, "I was up until 4 a.m. last night ... trying to think of ways to kill her and not go to jail. If I could literally kill her and not go to hell, I would do it in a heartbeat."
In a July 2025 text, Botner had mentioned wanting to kill Ashley. She cried as she read it, saying she regretted the message and "didn't mean it." In another text to Caleb in August 2025, she wrote she wanted him to divorce Ashley, not kill her: "I'm not asking that you take her life, obviously, because that's not what you should do, and I know you actually wouldn’t. But to make the divorce happen, it would change everything."
Botner was not charged in the case nor accused by authorities of any crime. She also told the court she had not been offered anything for her testimony. Flynn will learn his fate at the sentencing hearing on October 5.
