A former “Family Feud” contestant who joked on the show about regretting marrying his wife has been sentenced to life in prison for killing the spouse to whom he was estranged.
An Illinois judge handed down the three life sentences to Timothy Bliefnick for shooting Rebecca Bliefnick dead inside her home in February, according to KHQA, the CBS affiliate in Quincy, Illinois.
A jury convicted Bliefnick of two counts of first-degree murder and one count of home invasion in May. The station reported that Bliefnick was sentenced to “natural life” in prison, which means he has no chance for release.
“You researched this murder. You planned this murder. You practiced this murder. You broke into her house and you shot her 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 times,” Judge Robert Adrian said during Friday’s sentencing hearing, according to video posted by KHQA.
“I don’t know how long it took you to do that,” the judge continued. “Some of those shots were fired while she was lying on the ground, and you did all of that while your children were upstairs at your house, lying snug in their beds.”
During his trial, prosecutors said Bliefnick biked to his wife’s home at night, climbed up the house and busted into a second-story window on Feb. 23.
His wife ran to her bathroom for safety, but prosecutors said Bliefnick busted through the door and shot her 14 times — one for each year they were married.
Bliefnick filed for divorce from his wife in January 2021, but it hadn’t been finalized yet.
Rebecca Bliefnick, a 41-year-old nurse, lived in the home with her three sons, ages 6, 10 and 12.
The former contestant shocked the crowd during an appearance on “Family Feud” more than three years ago with his response to host Steve Harvey’s question: “What’s the biggest mistake you made at your wedding?”
Bliefnick addressed his wife, who was not on the team, with “Honey, I love you” before giving his answer as “said ‘I do.’”
Mr. Harvey gave a long pause for comic effect before Bliefnick began speaking again.
“Not my mistake, I love my wife,” he said before he rhetorically asked the host, “I’m going to get in trouble for that, aren’t I?”
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.
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