Former 'Family Feud' contestant Timothy Bliefnick gets life for wife's murder

QUINCY, Ill. -- A judge sentenced a former contestant on the television game show "Family Feud" to life in prison after he was convicted of first-degree murder and other charges in the slaying of his estranged wife in western Illinois.

Timothy Bliefnick, 40, showed no reaction as Adams County Circuit Judge Robert Adrian read the sentence Friday, news outlets reported.

A jury in May convicted Bliefnick of murder, home invasion and use of a firearm to commit first-degree murder in the Feb. 23 shooting death of Rebecca Bliefnick, 41. Her body was found by a family member inside her Quincy home after she failed to pick up her children from school. She had been shot multiple times.

The couple was separated and going through a divorce.

Bliefnick's attorney did not immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment.

In 2020, Timothy Bliefnick and some of his family members appeared on ABC's "Family Feud", KHQA-TV has reported.

One of the questions asked by host Steve Harvey was, "What was the biggest mistake you made at your wedding?" Bliefnick answered "I do." He immediately told Harvey "not mine to say, not mine to say. I love my wife." He also said, "I'm going to get in trouble for that, aren't I?" Harvey responded, "It's going to be a lot of hell to pay at your house."

Bliefnick's answer was second on the board with 20 out of 100 people polled giving the same answer. Getting "sloshed" was No. 1 with 30 answers.