
Former MLB pitcher Dan Serafini was convicted on Monday of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and first-degree burglary stemming from the 2021 shooting of his wife’s parents.
Serafini was found guilty of shooting and killing Robert Gary Spohr and injuring Wendy Wood on June 5, 2021, at their residence near Lake Tahoe, California. (While Wood initially survived the shooting, she passed away a year later.)
According to a report from the Sacramento Bee, evidence such as emails and text messages were presented to the jury, highlighting Serafini’s frustration regarding a $1.3 million loan his in-laws provided for a renovation project. It was noted that his wife received a check for $90,000 from her parents on the day of the shooting, which was intended as a loan for Serafini to purchase a GTO.
Additionally, the jury reviewed security footage that identified Serafini’s shoes and walk, which matched the video captured at a hotel prior to the incident. “We spent a good 20 minutes pausing video and just staring at shoes,” one juror remarked after the verdict. “From the hotel video all the way to the garage video. It’s the same exact shoe and the walk, the hitch in the hip nailed it in.”
Serafini, 51, pitched in parts of seven seasons in the MLB, appearing in 104 games and recording a 6.04 ERA. Over his career, he played for teams like the Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, Colorado Rockies, and San Diego Padres.