Judge Jeannine Pratt sentenced Caleb Flynn to life without parole. Here's who she is.

Caleb C. Flynn was a worship leader at his Dayton-area church (ChurchLeaders). On Oct. 5, a judge sentenced him to life in prison without parole for murdering his wife, Ashley Flynn, 37, in their Tipp City home “while your children were sleeping just a few feet away,” as she told him (Dayton Daily News).

A jury convicted him Sept. 29 of aggravated murder and eight other counts. Many of the texts he sent Alleigha Botner, whom he met when she was an intern at his church, were read in court, including “I need her to die, to cheat again, to leave” (CBS News).

Botner testified that she and Flynn had an affair, and his lawyer acknowledged it in opening statements (CBS News). Flynn says he did not kill his wife.

The judge, Jeannine N. Pratt, ordered him to serve 16 years on other counts before the life term begins. Here's who she is, and what she said from the bench.

What she decided

Pratt sentenced Flynn to life in prison without the possibility of parole, to begin after 16 years of consecutive terms, made up of seven years on firearm specifications and three years on each of three evidence-tampering counts (Dayton Daily News).

She found that Flynn presented “the highest risk” to the public (Miami Valley Today). She also ordered $20,000 in restitution to Ashley Flynn's parents (Dayton Daily News).

Bench Watch BreakdownConsecutive sentencesShow or hide the explanation

What it means

When a person gets more than one prison term, the judge decides how they add up. Concurrent means the terms run at the same time. Consecutive means one starts after the other ends, so the time stacks up.

In this case

Flynn got seven years on firearm specifications and three years each for three counts of tampering with evidence, all served one after another. That is 16 years. His life term starts after that.

Why it matters

Ohio law makes a firearm-specification term run before, and on top of, the sentence for the crime itself. To stack other terms, a judge must make findings, such as that it's needed to protect the public or to punish the offender.

Ohio Rev. Code 2929.14(C)

For aggravated murder without a death-penalty specification, Ohio law lists four possible sentences, which are life without parole and life with parole eligibility after 20, 25 or 30 years (Ohio Rev. Code 2929.03). LOCAL 12 reported that the judge imposed “the mandatory sentence,” and when the indictment was announced, the prosecutor's office said that if convicted, Flynn would serve life without parole (LOCAL 12; Tipp City Gazette). At the hearing, Flynn's lawyer, L. Patrick Mulligan, urged the court “to exercise discretion as to parole review” (Miami Valley Today). Bench Watch hasn't seen the sentencing entry, which would show whether the other three sentences were open to Judge Pratt.

Counts arising from the same conduct merge for sentencing under Ohio's allied-offenses law (Ohio Rev. Code 2941.25). A live blog of the hearing reported that counts 2 through 6, the murder and felonious assault counts, merged into the aggravated murder count (Courtroom Insider).

Bench Watch BreakdownAllied offenses (when charges merge)Show or hide the explanation

What it means

Sometimes one act breaks more than one law. Ohio does not let a judge punish a person twice for the same act. So the judge folds those charges into one. Lawyers call this merging.

In this case

The jury found Flynn guilty of murder, felonious assault and aggravated murder for the same shooting. A live blog of the hearing reported that those counts merged into a single count of aggravated murder, which is the charge Pratt sentenced him on.

Why it matters

A long list of guilty verdicts does not always mean more time. What counts is how many separate acts there were.

Ohio Rev. Code 2941.25

What she said from the bench

Pratt called Flynn's actions “abhorrent” (WHIO) and said he posed “an extreme risk of harm to the public, in fact the highest risk” (Dayton Daily News). She also spoke about his church life. A pastor testified at trial that Flynn volunteered on his church's worship team and worked as a contracted worship leader (The Roys Report).

To Ashley Flynn's family, she said, "Please remain steadfast in your faith and carry on Ashley's light in everything that you do" (Dayton Daily News).

What she decided before trial

The state asked Pratt to let two child witnesses testify behind a screen so they would not see the defendant. She refused on July 7, finding the state had not shown the specific need the Constitution's Confrontation Clause requires (Dayton 24/7 Now). After both sides rested Sept. 28, the state asked her to dismiss two misdemeanor intimidation counts, and a court filing the next morning showed she had approved it (WHIO).

Bench Watch BreakdownThe Confrontation ClauseShow or hide the explanation

What it means

The Sixth Amendment gives a person accused of a crime the right to face the witnesses against them. Most of the time, that means a witness speaks in the courtroom, in front of the accused, and the defense can ask them questions.

In this case

Prosecutors asked to put up a screen so two children would not have to see Caleb Flynn while they spoke in court. A judge can allow that, but only if the state shows that seeing the accused would harm that child. Judge Pratt said the state had not shown that, so she said no.

Why it matters

Facing your accuser is one of the oldest rights in our courts. Judges have to protect it while also protecting children who speak in court.

Maryland v. Craig (1990), on when a child can testify outside the defendant's view

What happens next

Flynn told the court he did not kill his wife and would keep fighting to prove his innocence (WKEF). His trial lawyers filed a notice of appeal Oct. 7 to Ohio's Second District Court of Appeals, listing issues including the jury instructions and the denial of a change of venue (LOCAL 12; WHIO). Court records filed Oct. 15 show attorney Jacob S. Seidl was appointed to handle the appeal (WHIO; Dayton Daily News).

Bench Watch BreakdownNotice of appealShow or hide the explanation

What it means

A notice of appeal is a short paper that tells the court one side wants a higher court to look at the case. It starts the appeal. It does not make the arguments yet. Those come later, in writing.

In this case

Flynn's lawyers filed his notice on Oct. 7, two days after he was sentenced. It goes to Ohio's Second District Court of Appeals. They listed issues like the jury instructions and the judge's refusal to move the trial.

Why it matters

An appeal is not a new trial. The higher court looks for legal mistakes. It does not hear new witnesses.

Ohio Rules of Appellate Procedure (Rule 4)

Who is Judge Pratt?

Pratt was elected to the Miami County Court of Common Pleas in 2014, took office in February 2015 and was re-elected in 2020, according to her official biography. She ran unopposed for a new six-year term on Nov. 3, 2026, and won; the results are unofficial until the county board of elections certifies them (Miami Valley Today).

Before that, she spent 18 years as an assistant prosecutor in the same county, handling child abuse and neglect cases and felony prosecutions, after working in insurance defense and domestic relations law. She has served five terms as the court's administrative judge and runs its drug court docket (official biography).

Bench Watch is logging her sentences in serious felony cases, with a source for each. See her sentencing record.