Ashley Benefield, the former ballerina convicted in July of manslaughter for killing her estranged husband in what she claimed was self-defense, was sentenced on Tuesday to 20 years in prison plus 10 years of probation.
Ashley Benefield, 33, shot her husband, Doug Benefield, 58, at her home in Florida on 27 September 2020. The subsequent media circus and trial, dubbed the “Black Swan trial,” has left many wondering if the act was intentional or in self-defense.
Ashley Benefield, who was originally charged with second-degree murder, testified in court that her husband was abusive and controlling – and that her multiple previous attempts to seek protection from authorities had gone unheeded.
She said she sought injunctions in 2018 and 2020 to bar her husband from seeing their child, accusing him of abuse. No criminal charges were brought against Doug Benefield, and the latter case against him was still in progress when he died.
During the trial, defense attorneys also brought two accusations of juror misconduct. One was for a juror they argued did not reveal information suggesting possible impartiality and another accused a juror of relaying information about the trial via cell phone. Matthew Whyte, the circuit court judge, dismissed both.
On the day Ashley Benefield shot her husband, she testified to an altercation in which she believed he was trying to kill her in her home. She said Doug Benefield blocked her from leaving, advanced towards her and struck her in the face while she pointed a gun at him, fearing for her life.
Suzanne O’Donnell, the prosecutor, argued that physical evidence from the shooting – including the fatal bullet wound from side to side, not the front of Doug Benefield’s body – contradicted Ashley Benefield’s testimony. O’Donnell accused Benefield of “performing” grief in the courtroom and said that killing her husband was Benefield’s way of achieving her ultimate goal, to gain sole custody of their child.
Ashley Benefield was acquitted of murder but received the lesser charge of manslaughter, which carried a maximum sentence of 30 years. At Tuesday’s hearing, she reportedly remained expressionless as the punishment was read.
Doug Benefield’s relatives said in the hearing that the sentence was fair and that they never believed Ashley Benefield showed remorse.
“I’ve waited so long to speak to her, face to face,” said Doug Benefield’s daughter, Eva Benefield, in a victim impact statement. “I hope prison serves her well.”
English (US)