Wife splits with vet accused of killing pregnant lover

The wife of David Rapoport, the Upper Gwynedd veterinarian charged with fatally shooting his pregnant lover, filed for divorce Friday in Montgomery County Court.

Elizabeth Rapoport's petition should not affect the criminal case against her husband in the March 16 slaying of Jennifer Snyder in Lehigh County, lawyers in the criminal matter said.

Married people in Pennsylvania can refuse or be blocked from testifying about confidential communications with their spouses in some criminal matters. But exceptions are made in murders and, in any case, the divorce was filed well after the time Snyder was killed.

Rapoport, 30, is being held without bail in the Lehigh County prison, awaiting a Sept. 19 trial date. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty, saying he fatally shot Snyder, 27, and her unborn child along a remote road in North Whitehall Township.

Snyder, a veterinary technician from Lower Macungie, was about two months pregnant with Rapoport's child, authorities have said.

Their long-running, extramarital relationship had led to a parking lot scuffle in 2009 between the Rapoports and Snyder, police have said.

Elizabeth Rapoport's lawyer, Erin Lentz, declined to discuss any details of the petition, which is not considered a public record under Montgomery County Court rules.

John Waldron, one of David Rapoport's defense lawyers, said Elizabeth Rapoport had been cooperative and supportive since her husband's arrest. He said he is waiting for two psychiatric reports on David Rapoport to be submitted before deciding on a defense strategy.

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