LAKEPORT — A Clearlake man accused of murdering his wife will return to court in two weeks to allow his attorney and the prosecutor to appear in the case, the court decided Friday.
Eddie Gillespie, 50, appeared in court Friday on charges of murder and assault with a firearm. A special allegation that he used a firearm, causing serious bodily harm or death, accompanies the charges. He faces 50 years to life in prison with the charges and allegation.
Gillespie allegedly shot his wife, Tracey Gillespie, 52, multiple times about 6:20 a.m. Tuesday in her Clearlake Oaks home on Walnut Way.
Attorney Doug Rhoades, appearing for Stephen Carter, said Friday that Gillespie would wait to enter a plea until his next court date.
Tuesday morning, Gillespie called sheriff”s dispatch and said he shot his wife inside the Walnut Way home, said Capt. Jim Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff”s Office. Deputies and detectives with the Major Crimes Unit responded to the home where they arrested Gillespie. Law enforcement recovered a large-caliber handgun. Northshore fire crews responded and pronounced his wife dead at the scene.
Further investigation revealed that the Gillespies had had only been married since February and that they were estranged, living in separate homes, Bauman said. On Sunday, Tracey Gillespie argued with their son, Kyle Gillespie, 27, at Eddie Gillepie”s home resulting in their son”s arrest for battery.
“Eddie and Tracey Gillespie had reportedly been arguing about Kyle Gillespie”s arrest on and off since Sunday”s incident and when Eddie Gillespie called dispatch Tuesday morning to report the shooting, he also stated Tracey had ?put his son in jail,”” Bauman said in a press release.
“Kyle Gillespie was released on his own recognizance by the courts the same day his father was booked for murder,” Bauman said.?
An autopsy was performed on Tracey Gillespie Thursday morning at the Napa County Coroner”s Office, Bauman said. The exact cause of death is pending the findings of that autopsy.?
Eddie Gillespie will return to court 9 a.m. June 11. He remains in custody at the Lake County Jail on a no-bail hold.
Contact Katy Sweeny at kdsweeny@gmail.com or call her directly at 263-5636, ext. 37.
