In a story that is grim even by Lubbock standards, Ynez Spencer was sentenced this week to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty to setting a woman—and her home—on fire during a violent domestic attack in November 2022. He also received a concurrent 10-year sentence for domestic assault, meaning he’ll have plenty of time to reflect on his life choices from behind bars.
According to court records, the attack started as a domestic dispute near 106th Street and Elgin. Spencer beat the victim, stabbed or sliced her leg with an edged weapon, then escalated things in a way that still defies comprehension: he poured a flammable substance on her and the house, lit it, and ran. Firefighters arrived to find the woman with severe burns across her face and body. She survived—but with permanent disfiguring injuries.
The victim identified Spencer to a neighbor immediately after the attack, and police quickly connected the dots. The sentence includes 1,151 days of jail credit and a lifetime protective order keeping Spencer away from the victim—an obvious necessity, not exactly a bold judicial innovation.
And because Lubbock can never just stop at “horrific crime,” there’s an extra layer of surreal: Spencer had previously presented himself as a local community theater actor, appeared in commercials, and even popped up on Chicago P.D. Apparently the line between “local performer” and “violent felon” is thinner than anyone would like to believe.
Fifty years for burning someone alive—and somehow the most shocking part is still that this guy once auditioned for applause instead of a prison sentence.
https://www.everythinglubbock.com/news/local-news/ynez-spencer-pleads-guilty/
https://www.kcbd.com/2026/01/21/30-year-old-man-sentenced-50-years-arson-assault-attack-woman/