Convicted murderer Lynlee Renick drops her appeal

Convicted killer Lynlee Renick speaks to “Dateline NBC” correspondent Andrea Canning at northeast Missouri’s Vandalia prison in January 2022 (file photo courtesy of “Dateline NBC”)

A former Columbia spa owner convicted of killing her husband near New Florence in 2017 has changed her mind regarding an appeal.

Online court records show the Western District Court of Appeals dismissed Lynlee Renick’s appeal on Monday, at the request of Renick’s Columbia attorney, Carol Jansen.

Ms. Renick owned Ascensia Spa in Columbia’s Cherry Hill, at the time her husband Ben was shot to death in Montgomery County. She’s now serving a 16-year prison sentence for second degree murder and armed criminal action at the Chillicothe Correctional Center.

Renick testified during the emotional trial that Michael Humphrey of Jefferson City killed her husband, but Humphrey told the jury that Lynlee killed Ben Renick. Humphrey was also convicted of second degree murder. Missouri assistant attorney general Kevin Zoellner told jurors during the penalty phase that Lynlee killed her husband for money, sex and freedom.

Renick’s December 2021 trial was carried live on Court TV, and “Dateline NBC” and CBS’ “48 Hours” had crews at the Boone County Courthouse for the trial.