'Shield' actor Michael Jace taunted and shot dead wife, court told

US actor Michael Jace gunned down his wife in front of their children at their Los Angeles home after taunting her over her request for a divorce, a court heard Tuesday.

April Jace was able to stagger away after being hit in the back, only for her husband to shoot her twice more, Deputy District Attorney Tannaz Mokayef told the trial in LA.

"You like to run so much. Why don't you try running to heaven?" Jace taunted his keep-fit enthusiast wife before shooting her in the legs, according to the prosecutor.

The 53-year-old, famous for his part in police drama "The Shield" and big-screen roles including in "Forrest Gump," faces 50 years in jail if convicted of murder over the shooting two years ago in the Hyde Park neighborhood.

His defense team doesn't dispute that he killed the victim but says data from her iPhone 5S could provide insights into his state of mind as he gunned her down.