Former Katy area football coach to face sentencing trial for 1999 murder

By R. HANS MILLER
Posted 2/4/20

David Temple, a former Katy area football coach, is going through the process for sentencing for the murder of his wife, Belinda Temple in 1999. A hearing regarding change of venue for Temple’s …

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Former Katy area football coach to face sentencing trial for 1999 murder

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David Temple, a former Katy area football coach, is going through the process for sentencing for the murder of his wife, Belinda Temple in 1999. A hearing regarding change of venue for Temple’s sentencing trial is set to take place in the court of Judge Kelli Johnson of the 178th District Court Feb. 5.

“Mr. Temple was found guilty for the second time last year, but the jury was hung on punishment so the jury trial that is coming up in March is only for the punishment phase of trial,” said Morgan McAllister, a communications specialist with the Harris County District Clerk’s office.

Temple is currently being held at the Harris County Jail with a $1 million bond pending a hearing to determine how sentencing will be conducted. Temple was first convicted for the crime in 2007, but that conviction was later overturned due to prosecutorial misconduct. A second trial was held in 2019 but the jury deadlocked while deliberating sentencing after finding Temple guilty.

The sentencing trial is scheduled to take place March 27 at 9 a.m. in Johnson’s court. Prosecutors have asked that the March 27 trial have a change of venue due to the pretrial publicity associated with the case, according to court documents. The case has been featured in national media, including an episode of ABC’s “2020.”

“The State’s concern is unfounded with 4.4 million people in Harris County. With the passage of time, the defendant can get a fair trial in Harris County,” Temple’s attorney, Stanley Schneider said in a Feb. 3 motion for continuance filed with the Harris County District Clerk.

Schneider’s request also includes a request to postpone the March trial in order to allow him to prepare to represent Temple in the sentencing proceedings.

David Temple, Harris County District Clerk, Morgan McAllister, Harris County, Stanley Schneider