Former Cubs Pitcher Pleads Not Guilty to Murder of his Father-in-Law
Former MLB pitcher Daniel Serafini pleaded not guilty to the 2021 murder of his father-in-law and attempted murder of his mother-in-law in his first appearance inside a Placer County courtroom in Roseville, Calif, on Tuesday. Serafini, 49, was arrested in October in Nevada and is being accused of killing his 70-year-old father-in-law, Gary Spohr, and trying to kill his mother-in-law, Wendy Wood, at their house in Lake Tahoe on June 5, 2021.
Though Wood survived the initial attack, she died by suicide in March 2023.
Serafini was arrested for the alleged crimes along with 33-year-old Samantha Scott, who was reportedly a longtime friend of Erin Spohr, who is Serafini’s wife and the daughter of the victims. Scott was also the nanny to Erin’s two children.
In another twist to this case, Erin’s sister Adrienne, suspected that her brother-in-law and Erin were responsible for the murder of her parents and had filed a lawsuit against them several months before Serafini was arrested.
The wrongful death lawsuit was filed on June 5, 2023, exactly two years after the shootings.
Via the San Francisco Chronicle.
One purpose of the lawsuit, reviewed by the Chronicle, is apparently to keep Serafini and his wife, Erin Spohr, from collecting inheritance money after the slayings to pay off hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt from his bar business.
In the suit, Adrienne Spohr writes that she believed Serafini and her sister “caused, conspired to cause, or otherwise participated in causing, the premeditated and planned June 5, 2021, murder of Robert Gary Spohr and attempted murder of Wendy Wood, eventually leading to Wood’s death.”
Erin Spohr has not been arrested in connection to the shootings of her parents. In August, Erin filed a lawsuit against her sister Adrienne, accusing her of elder abuse and claiming that she manipulated their mother when she was vulnerable after the shooting.
Via KCRA.
“Adrienne isolated Wendy to facilitate her plan to exploit Wendy to divert all family assets for her own selfish benefit,” the lawsuit states.
It claims that Adrienne used undue influence to cut Erin out of the picture and take control of the parents’ estates valued at more than $10 million.
Serafini was taken with the 26th overall pick in the first round of the 1992 MLB Draft by the Minnesota Twins. The left-handed pitcher made his MLB debut with the Twins in 1996 and eventually retired from the sport in 2013. After his playing days, Serafini and his wife opened a bar called The Oak Tavern (formerly named The Bullpen Bar), in Sparks, Nevada. The bar was featured on a June 2015 episode of the reality TV show, “Bar Rescue.”
By 2017, their bar was out of business.
Serafini played for Minnesota from 1996-98, splitting time in the majors and minor leagues, before his contract was purchased by the Chicago Cubs. Serafini pitched for the Cubs during the 1999 season, making 42 total appearances that included four starts, while also making a pair of starts at Triple-A. Serafini also appeared in the major leagues with the San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies, while also playing professionally in Japan, Taiwan and Mexico. He also had stints with the San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers, Anaheim Angels and St. Louis Cardinals, though Serafini never reached the majors with those organizations.
Following the 2007 season with the Rockies, MLB suspended Serafini 50 games for testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance in violation of the league’s joint drug prevention and treatment program. Serafini claimed he took the substance that was prescribed to him while pitching in Japan for medical reasons.
If convicted, Serafini could face a maximum sentence of life without parole or the death penalty.