Actor Michael Jace was arrested on suspicion of fatally shooting his wife during an argument Monday night and detectives are looking into whether the couple’s financial or other marital difficulties played a role in the killing.
Jace, who played a police officer in the hit FX television series “The Shield,” was being held on USD 1 million bail and is suspected of shooting his wife multiple times in the couple’s home in the quiet, modest Hyde Park neighborhood of Los Angeles.
The couple’s two sons, who are the under the age of 10, were at home at the time of shooting, although police are unsure of whether they witnessed their parents fighting or the gunfire. The body of April Jace, 40, was found in a hallway of the home and a handgun believed to have belonged to her husband was recovered, said Los Angeles Police Detective Dean Vinluan.
“She came home with the kids and then the dispute happened and the shooting happened,” Vinluan said. Jace spoke to an emergency services operator after the shooting, but it was unclear whether he called for help or the operator called the home. The actor was seen walking out of the home when officers arrived around 8:30 PM and he was detained and later arrested. “We don’t know if he came out of fear or was trying to get out of there,” Vinluan said. Detectives will review multiple emergency calls that were placed after the shooting to try to confirm what happened before Jace is formally charged.
Police had not responded to the couple’s home on reports of domestic violence, Vinluan said, but the actor had been under financial pressure in recent years. He declared for bankruptcy in 2011 and had been delinquent on payments as recently as December. Calls from The Associated Press seeking comment from Jace’s agent and manager were not immediately returned. Jace, 51, is best known for his role as LAPD Officer Julien Lowe in the TV series The Shield. He also appeared on the show “Southland” and had small roles in the movies Planet of the Apes, Boogie Nights and Forrest Gump. Vinluan said the couple’s sons are now with family. His wife had worked as a financial aid counselor at Biola University, a private Christian school, since March 2013. (AP)