Jury acquits former Harris County deputy in wife's 2019 shooting death

It was just after 3 a.m. in Houston in the summer of 2019 when first responders arrived at the home of Renard and Patricia Spivey and found 52-year-old Patricia dead in the closet from multiple gunshot wounds.

Her husband Renard had a bullet wound in his leg. He told officers the couple had been arguing and fighting over a gun when it fired. Renard Spivey, a sheriff's deputy with Harris County who worked as a bailiff in courts and played a bailiff on the television show "Justice for All with Judge Cristina Perez," was detained and taken to a hospital.

Patricia's 83-year-old father, who suffered from dementia, was also living in the home and was asleep when the shots were fired.

First responders questioned how a gun could discharge multiple times by accident and why a man of Renard's size, about six foot three and 290 pounds, would need to struggle with his smaller wife over a gun. Officers noted bodybuilding trophies in the home.

Patrina Marshall, Patricia's daughter from a previous relationship, arrived at the scene. An officer told her that her mother had died during a struggle with her husband. Marshall said she shut down and felt numb. She said she regretted not seeing her mother one last time.

Marshall said her mother fell quickly for Renard. It was Patricia's first marriage and Renard's third. Renard told "48 Hours" that Patricia was spontaneous and a beautiful person. He proposed in 2013 after she pointed out a ring she liked in a store. They celebrated in Hawaii and built a 3,000-square-foot home with a three-car garage.

Within hours of Patricia's death, Renard came under suspicion for murder. At the hospital, he refused to speak with detectives after a union representative advised him not to. The medical examiner ruled the death a homicide after finding multiple gunshot entry and exit wounds, with the fatal shot piercing her lungs and heart.

On July 29, 2019, Renard Spivey was charged with his wife's murder. He posted $50,000 bond two days later. He has maintained that the shooting was an accident.

Renard's twin sister, Renee Spivey-Frazier, said she could not believe the news because she knew he loved Patricia unconditionally. His friend Gerald Graham said he had never seen Renard in any altercation.

Renard hired prominent criminal defense attorneys Dick DeGuerin and Mike DeGeurin, and Mike's son Michael DeGeurin Jr. The defense reviewed home security footage and said it showed a loving relationship.

Patricia's family questioned why Renard was free on bond. Her cousin Cybil Shepherd said she did not think the bond was high enough for a murder charge and that being a sheriff gave him privilege.

Patricia worked as an executive assistant at Methodist Hospital in Houston. Family members described her as the glue of the family who helped others and stayed socially active.

Renard resigned from the Harris County Sheriff's Department after more than 20 years and stopped taping the television show where he had portrayed a bailiff for nine years. He remained under house arrest but was allowed to continue bodybuilding training, go to church and spend time with family.

Patricia's childhood friend Ezra Washington said that even before the marriage, Renard was controlling with Patricia. He said Renard told her not to drink at a restaurant and that Renard disliked Cybil Shepherd. Shepherd said Patricia distanced herself after the marriage. Marshall said her mother and Renard argued often after moving into the new house, mainly over intimacy, and that her mother suspected Renard was using steroids.

Renard said he was prescribed testosterone replacement therapy by a doctor and denied taking steroids or experiencing mood swings. He said the couple argued the night of the shooting because Patricia thought he was cheating.

Security footage showed Patricia at a table turning her phone away when Renard approached. Renard said he later took her phone into the closet while she appeared to be asleep. He said Patricia followed him with a gun, pointed it at him with her finger on the trigger, and that he grabbed her wrist to take the weapon away. He said the gun went off, shooting him in the leg first, then fired two more times as they struggled, striking Patricia in the chest and arm.

The defense said the first shot hit Patricia in the left chest through her lungs and heart, the second hit her right arm and entered her upper right chest, and the third hit her right arm and entered her chest. Prosecutors and former prosecutor Lisa Andrews said the medical examiner found it possible that three shots struck her and that investigators believed Renard may have fired a fourth shot into his own leg to stage the scene.

Three gunshots are audible on the home surveillance recording. Investigators identified a fourth sound about a minute and a half later that they said was a gunshot fired in a different part of the house. Renard and his attorneys denied a fourth shot was fired and said the sound was likely a camera being activated. Three empty cartridges were found at the scene.

The 911 call drew scrutiny. Renard was calm when he reported shots fired and referred to Patricia as "they" rather than naming her. It took him two and a half minutes to tell the operator he had accidentally shot his wife. He was heard counting chest compressions but took a break without telling the operator, saying he went to unlock the garage door for medics.

Ezra Washington told authorities that two days before the shooting, Patricia said she was done and planned to leave. He said he spoke with Renard the day of the shooting and that Renard admitted using steroids and said he would show Patricia she was not getting the house. Washington said he told Renard not to be stupid. Renard denied those conversations took place.

The coronavirus pandemic delayed the trial for more than four years. On Nov. 28, 2023, Renard appeared in court facing a possible life sentence. Prosecutors argued he intentionally shot Patricia after she threatened to leave. The defense argued self-defense and an unintentional discharge of the gun.

Defense attorney Dick DeGuerin demonstrated how the Smith & Wesson semiautomatic could fire repeatedly with slight pressure on the trigger during a struggle. He said powder burns on Renard's right hand showed he had grabbed the gun. Prosecutors noted that Patricia's body was found deep inside the closet, not at the entrance where the struggle was said to have occurred.

At 2:49 a.m. the night of the shooting, Patricia posted a meme on Facebook about characterizing people by their actions. At 3:01 a.m., security video captured her saying "it's the same thing over and over again." At 3:07 a.m., three gunshots were heard.

Renard testified that he did not pull the trigger. A crime scene technician testified that the trigger was never separately swabbed for DNA. Marshall said her mother was not violent and believed Patricia was in the closet packing to leave.

On Dec. 6, 2023, after 12 hours of deliberations over two days, the jury found Renard Spivey not guilty.

Renard said he fell to the floor crying. His sister said there were no winners. Patricia's family said they could not believe the verdict and that Patricia did not receive justice. Dick DeGuerin said the prosecution never proved whose finger was on the trigger.

Since the acquittal, Renard said he has volunteered with an organization that feeds the homeless. He said he still misses Patricia every day and cannot sleep at night.