Ex-American Idol contestant Caleb Flynn’s daughter speaks out on his 24-year-old mistress
TIPP CITY, OHIO: Caleb Flynn’s daughters confronted their father over his affair with 24-year-old Alleigha Botner as he was sentenced for killing their mother, Ashley Flynn.
Their statements were read in court on Monday, October 5, after Flynn, 40, was convicted of Ashley’s murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
The girls, who were asleep just feet away when their mother was killed, spoke about both the devastating loss of Ashley and their anger over their father choosing another woman.
“I DON’T PLAN ON COMING TO SEE YOU.” In a letter read aloud in court by Jill Smith, Ashley Flynn’s mother, one of Ashley’s daughters addressed her father, Caleb Flynn, saying she loved him deeply but that his actions had caused devastating pain for their family. Flynn's daughter him to tell the truth, accept the consequences of his actions and repent to God. She said Ashley was “the best thing that ever happened to you” and questioned how he could throw away the life they had built together. She also described the pain of seeing the fallout from his decisions before ending her letter with a clear message to her father: “I don’t plan on coming to see you.” More details here https://t.co/rvFhkT1Oy8
— Fox News US (@FoxUSNews) October 5, 2026
Caleb Flynn’s daughters question his affair with Alleigha Botner
Ashley Flynn’s daughters did not hold back when addressing their father’s relationship with Botner, who, at 24, is closer in age to them than she is to Caleb.
“How could you cheat on her and go to the awful girl Alleigha?” Caleb’s younger daughter wrote in a statement read in court by Ashley’s brother-in-law.
Her elder sister was equally direct about the age difference between Caleb and his mistress.
Shocking moment in the Caleb Flynn trial this morning as his mistress choked up reading text messages between the two of them about Ashley Flynn, Caleb’s wife. “I just wish I didn’t say this. I didn’t mean this, Alleigha Botner said on the stand. Then she read a message she sent Caleb: “I want to kill her, Caleb. So bad.” Caleb responded: “That makes two of us.” #calebflynn
— Nate Eaton (@NateNewsNow) September 24, 2026
“By the way, Ashley Flynn was the best thing that ever happened to you,” she wrote. “You had the best life you had, and you decided to throw all that away for a girl half your age.”
The girls’ statements showed how deeply Caleb’s affair affected them, as they were also dealing with the loss of their mother.
“What did she ever do to make you hate her so much?” the younger daughter wrote. “She was my best friend. And then you chose to kill the only mother I ever had.”
Ashley Flynn’s daughters blame Caleb for their loss
Caleb shot Ashley in the head while she slept at their Tipp City home on February 16.
Their daughters were asleep only a few feet away. Prosecutors said he later staged the scene to look like a burglary.
The younger daughter repeatedly returned to the choices her father made.
“How could you do such a thing?” she wrote. “You chose to take the only mother I had.”
“It was your choice to have an affair,” she added. “It was your choice to leave your only daughters. It was your choice ... to kill the only mother I've ever had.”
Caleb’s elder daughter also told him how his actions had destroyed her trust.
“You made me feel like an idiot, thinking that I could trust you,” she wrote.
Caleb reportedly sobbed and groaned as his elder daughter’s statement was read in court. She concluded by saying she would not visit him in prison.
The girls were also heartbroken when they learned about their father’s affair. Ashley’s sister previously told the court that the elder daughter was not surprised to learn that Botner was the woman involved.
Caleb Flynn and Alleigha Botner’s relationship became key to case
Caleb’s relationship with Botner featured heavily during the murder trial. Prosecutors said Botner repeatedly gave him ultimatums to leave Ashley.
Hours before Ashley was killed, Caleb texted Botner, “I Choose You. I'm Free.”
Court evidence also included messages in which Caleb and Botner discussed wanting Ashley out of the way and, on separate occasions, expressed a desire for her to be dead.
Botner has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
Ashley is remembered by her family and friends as a devoted mother who loved creating memories with her daughters.
During their final weekend together, she planned a Galentine’s Day celebration that included a home spa, baking cookies, and watching ‘Cinderella.’
“If she could make a memory out of anything, she would,” Ashley’s lifelong friend Kara Crawford previously said.
Caleb Flynn gets life sentence for Ashley Flynn’s murder
Caleb was sentenced on October 5 to life in prison without parole for Ashley’s murder.
He was also ordered to serve three years for each of two firearm specifications and three years for each of three evidence-tampering convictions, all consecutively before his life sentence.
Caleb continues to deny killing Ashley, and his lawyer said they will appeal the conviction.