Where is Lynlee Renick now? Details explored ahead of Dateline on NBC

Lynlee Renick, once a Columbia, Missouri spa owner, has been incarcerated since early 2022 for orchestrating the 2017 murder of her husband, Ben Renick. He was known to be a snake breeder. According to the Columbia Missourian, she is currently housed at the maximum-security Chillicothe Correctional Center and will not be eligible for a first parole hearing until December 2034.

As per the NBC report dated June 27, 2025, Dateline will re-air Season 31, Episode 23, Secrets of the Snake Farm, at 9 pm ET and 8 pm CT tonight, revisiting every twist in the case.

The broadcast features interviews with detectives, prosecutors, and Ben Renick’s family. It will offer the viewers an updated look at how investigators moved from an apparent snake-bite tragedy to a homicide probe and, eventually, to Lynlee Renick’s conviction.

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Where Lynlee Renick Is Serving Her Sentence

Missouri Department of Corrections officials confirm that Lynlee Renick is serving a 16-year term for second-degree murder and armed criminal action at Chillicothe Correctional Centre, a mixed-custody women’s prison in northwest Missouri.

State corrections spokesperson Karen Pojmann told 93.9 The Eagle that the Board of Probation and Parole has scheduled Renick’s first hearing for December 2034. If she is denied, her projected release remains 2038, the year she turns 49, according to the Oxygen report dated April 23, 2023.

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Why Investigators Zeroed In on Lynlee Renick

The early theory that a loose python killed Ben collapsed when shell casings were found near his body, shifting the attention to a suspected homicide. As per a CBS News report dated August 6, 2024, Coroner Dave Colbert remarked:

“When I saw that shell casing on the shelf just above his head, I knew this was not from a snake. This was something much more heinous....I knew that this was a homicide at that time.”

Detectives soon uncovered mounting spa debts, a $1 million life-insurance policy naming Lynlee as beneficiary, and phone records showing constant contact with ex-boyfriend Michael Humphrey on the day of the murder. Oxygen quoted Missouri Highway Patrol Sgt. Darrin Haslag recalls the chaotic scene:

“We got the call that there was a man dead … it was suspected that it could have been a snake that’s loose in the facility.”

Investigators also documented a failed attempt to poison Ben with Percocet-laced protein powder weeks earlier. This evidence strengthened the motive narrative built by prosecutors.

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Trial and Verdict

Michael Humphrey turned state’s witness in 2021, helping locate the murder weapon and testifying that Lynlee pulled the trigger. As cited in the CBS News report, dated August 6, 2024, during opening statements, Prosecutor Kelly King told jurors:

“The defendant, Lynlee Renick, shot her husband, Ben, eight times, killing him … we're going to come back and ask that you to find her guilty”

After 5 hours of deliberation, the jury returned guilty verdicts for second-degree murder and armed criminal action. Sentenced to 16 years, Lynlee will have served roughly a decade by the time her parole board hearing arrives. As per the Oxygen report dated April 23, 2023, Ben’s brother, Sam Renick, expressed frustration over the length of the sentence, saying:

“We were happy that she was sentenced to the 16 years she was given, however, my brother’s life was worth a lot more than 16 years.”

Tonight’s Dateline encore packages the entire timeline, from the first 911 call to Lynlee’s 2021 testimony, and offers fresh commentary on her current prison life and pending parole milestones. For viewers seeking a concise, fact-driven account of the crime and its aftermath, Dateline’s episode Secrets of the Snake Farm remains the definitive broadcast.

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Stay tuned for more updates.