Caleb Flynn sentenced to life without parole for murdering wife Ashley Flynn Former American Idol contestant and Ohio music pastor Caleb Flynn was sentenced to life in prison without parole for murdering his wife Ashley Flynn and staging a home invasion. He apologized in court but insisted he did not kill her. A former music pastor in Ohio who appeared briefly on American Idol was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole Monday after a jury convicted him of murdering his wife while he was having an affair. Prosecutors said Caleb Flynn, 40, staged a home invasion in February after shooting Ashley Flynn, a 37-year-old schoolteacher and volleyball coach, then claimed she was killed by a burglar. Flynn had told 911 that an intruder shot his wife in their Ohio home. Days later, police arrested the former American Idol contestant for murder. The sentencing followed a jury verdict last week that found Flynn guilty of murder, felonious assault and tampering with evidence.Flynn Denies Killing Wife Despite Court ApologyWith tears rolling down his cheeks, Flynn apologized in court to his family, starting with his two daughters. I made vows to Ashley on our wedding day. I failed in those vows, he said. Although he admitted he lied about many things, Flynn remained adamant that he was innocent.As I stand here before God, who is my ultimate judge, I am not lying when I say I did not kill my wife, Flynn said. Miami County Common Pleas Judge Jeannine Pratt said she was deeply disturbed that Flynn used his faith to hide his deceit and lust. She quoted a victim statement from one of the daughters, read aloud moments earlier by a family member, asking: What did Ashley ever do to make you hate her so much?During closing arguments, prosecutors told jurors that Flynn wanted out of his marriage when he shot his wife at their house in Tipp City, a suburb north of Dayton. The couple's two daughters were home with their father when police arrived. He sent a text message to his lover the night before the shooting, saying, I choose you. I'm free.Affair With Church Intern Key to Murder ChargeActions will come tomorrow, prosecutors said. During the trial, Alleigha Botner testified she met Flynn in 2022 while she was a 20-year-old intern at his church and had an affair with him for more than a year. She told jurors that Flynn said he hated his wife and had thoughts of killing her. Jurors also heard AI-generated love songs that prosecutors said he made for Botner.Flynn didn't testify on his own behalf, nor did anybody else. The gun used to kill Ashley Flynn was not found at the scene, and his attorney told jurors that investigators found no evidence that Caleb Flynn fired a gun that day. Prosecutors said his fingerprints and DNA were at the scene and that his devices showed him moving around the house, even though he claimed he was asleep at the time of the shooting.In his 2013 appearance on American Idol, Flynn told TV viewers about how his wife had encouraged him to chase his dreams on the singing competition. He sang before judges Mariah Carey, Randy Jackson and Nicki Minaj but did not advance to the main competition in Hollywood. The case was reported by Julie Carr Smyth and Patrick Aftoora-orsagos.