Lyman Bostock Jr. was one of the most significant baseball prospects murdered by a jealous husband. What do we know about his wife, Yuovene Brooks?
Fox Sports has dedicated a new series to Lyman Bostock Jr, also known as Wesley. The first episode is titled “We Call Him Wesley,” It features Tom Rinaldi talking about the MLB rising star whose murder would go on to change the state law.
The show circles around Bostock Jr., who died in 1978. A jealous husband shot him to death as he thought the player was having an affair with his wife. But Lyman had only known the woman, Barbara Smith, for 20 minutes.
Moreover, Barbara’s husband, Leonard, spotted her and Lyman getting in a car together. He then followed them and pulled a gun when they made a stop. He was attempting to kill his wife but took Lyman’s life instead.
Lyman Bostock Wife Yuovene Brooks: Is She Alive?
Lyman Bostock left behind his 28-year-old wife when he died in 1978.
Having met each other in college, Lyman and Youvene clicked instantly and fell in love with each other. They were both studying at San Fernando Valley State College (now California State University Northridge).
Following the tragic death of her husband, Brooks remarried after several years. She raised a daughter with her second husband. But Brooks has already divorced her husband, and she is living single life once again.
As of 2008, she was a 58-year-old woman who had already moved on from the tragedy. In an ESPN interview, she said the memories take her to a place she doesn’t like. So, she prefers to keep them covered with dust.
Lyman Bostock Obituary And Killer Leonard Smith: Is He On Jail?
Lyman Bostock was shot and killed by Leonard Smith.
Even though the suspect was tried for murder twice, he didn’t spend any jail time. The first case was thrown out due to a hung jury. And in the second one, the jury didn’t find Smith guilty because he was mentally ill. He spent only 21 months under custody before he was released in 1980.
The trial was in Indiana, and the insanity law of Indiana had no privilege of putting insane people in jail. As a result, the state had to change the law so that the convict has to serve a sentence even after he is deemed mentally well.
But the laws were not in place during the trial of Leonard Smith, and he walked a free man. The man did die in 2010 because of natural causes. It means he spent over 30 years as a free man even after murdering a high-profile athlete.
Lyman Bostock Jr: A MLB Career To Remember
Lyman Bostock Jr. was on the verge of being one of the best baseball players of his generation.
Born in Birmingham, Alabama, he and his mother relocated to California after she had disputes with his father. He played baseball in high school and college. As a result, he was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in 1975.
The first MLB season was decent, where he played 98 games, averaging .282. But in his first entire season, he averaged .323, the fourth-best in the league. The season after, he upped the average to .336, the second-best in the league.
As a result, Bostock signed for California Angels in 1978. But the baseball player couldn’t complete even a single season with the Angels as the tragedy struck in 1978.