A Texas resident, Dakari Jahi Lenear, 48, has been sentenced to 65 years in prison, with the possibility of parole after 30 years, for the murder of his wife, Rhonda Lenear, 45. The sentencing was announced by Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg. Lenear pleaded guilty to the charges just as his trial was about to commence. The jury was instructed to find him guilty, leading to his sentencing.
The tragic incident occurred on May 19, 2021, in a residential area north of Jersey Village, over 17 miles northwest of Houston. Lenear, who was unemployed, was at home with his wife, an engineer working remotely, and their two teenage children who were being homeschooled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to prosecutors, Lenear instructed his children to go to the family’s truck. One of the teenagers, observing Lenear with an assault rifle through a window, texted their mother expressing fear for her safety. As Lenear entered the room where his wife was working, she began recording the confrontation on her phone.
Prosecutors revealed that Lenear told his wife to pray if she wished to, as both of them would be dead that day. He then proceeded to shoot his wife multiple times. The teenagers called 911 in response to the incident.
Harris County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrived at the scene and found Lenear in his open garage. His wife was discovered dead on the living room floor. Lenear claimed to investigators that his wife had attacked him with a knife and he had shot her in self-defense. However, the recording made by his wife during her final moments contradicted his claim.
Assistant District Attorney Kelly Marshall, who prosecuted the case, stated that Lenear had been terrorizing his wife for years. She praised Rhonda’s bravery in recording the confrontation, noting that her last words were the names of her children. Rhonda was remembered as a loving, vibrant individual and a dedicated mother who worked tirelessly to keep her family together.
Rhonda’s mother, Debra Tatum, expressed her grief but also her hope for healing. She told a local ABC affiliate, “I pray, just like when me and the kids prayed last night. I pray, ‘God, don’t let them have any bitterness, help them to turn everything around, turn everything that is going on for God to be lifted up.’”