LOS ANGELES (AP) — A jury on Tuesday convicted an actor who played a police officer on TV of second-degree murder in the shooting death of his wife that was partially witnessed by their two young sons.
The verdict in the trial of Michael Jace, who appeared on the FX series The Shield, came after a weeklong trial in which Los Angeles jurors were told the actor shot his wife April in the back and then twice in the legs with a revolver that belonged to her father.
Jace, 53, did not testify in his own defense. He told detectives soon after the attack that he had retrieved the gun to kill himself but couldn’t do it. Instead, he planned to shoot his wife, an avid runner, in the leg so she would feel pain, Jace told detectives in a recorded interview.
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Deputy District Attorney Tannaz Mokayef told jurors the actor was waiting for his wife and he shot her in the back and taunted her before shooting each of her legs.
Jace’s 10-year-old son testified that he heard his father say, “‘If you like running, then run to heaven,'” before firing the second time.
Savoy Brown, an adult son of April Jace, said the family was pleased with the verdict. He said watching Jace has been difficult for the family, and said he is hoping the actor, who bit his bottom lip when the verdict was read but showed no other emotion, will show his feelings when he is sentenced.
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Deputy District Attorney Tannaz Mokayef said the potential sentence would be 40 years to life in prison.
She said during the trial that the actor was upset that his wife wanted a divorce and believed she was having an affair, although no evidence was presented during the trial that she was cheating.
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Jace’s attorney, Jamon Hicks, said his client is remorseful for killing his wife. He said the actor may speak during his sentencing hearing to express his remorse, but he wants to be respectful of April’s family.
Hicks previously told jurors the actor accepted responsibility for killing his wife but should be convicted of voluntary manslaughter because he shot her in the heat of passion.
Jace also had small roles in films such as Planet of the Apes, Boogie Nights and Forrest Gump.
He turned himself in to police after the shooting and has been jailed ever since.
April Jace, 40, was a financial aid counselor at Biola University.