Shivangi Sinha
In September 2020, Doug Benefield was fatally shot in Central Park, Florida. His wife at the time, Ashley Benefield, called 911 from a neighbor’s house and admitted to being the shooter. She claimed it was an act of self-defense. However, as investigators examined the evidence and analyzed the crime scene, her account raised doubts. Authorities found inconsistencies that led them to question her version of events. The case, along with details of Ashley’s trial, is explored in depth in CBS’ ’48 Hours’ episode titled ‘The Black Swan Murder.’
Ashley Benefield and Her Husband Disagreed on Many Things
Ashley Byers was a graduate of the Maryland Youth Ballet and had aspirations of becoming a professional dancer. She briefly worked as a swimsuit model and was exploring various paths in life. In August 2016, while volunteering at Donald Trump’s campaign office in Sarasota, Florida, she met Doug Benefield. The 54-year-old was a widowed father to a teenage daughter, as his wife had died of a heart condition just nine months earlier. At the time, he was working as a consultant for tech companies, while 24-year-old Ashley was full of ambition and searching for her place in the world.
Ashley and Doug’s romance progressed rapidly, and just 13 days after meeting, they got married in August 2016. The transition wasn’t smooth because Doug’s daughter, Eva Benefield, struggled to accept the sudden changes. Despite the tension, the couple relocated to Charleston, South Carolina, where they launched the American National Ballet (ANB). In July 2017, Ashley announced she was pregnant, and from the outside, things appeared to be moving in a positive direction. However, their relationship was far from stable. The couple frequently argued, particularly about Doug’s relationship with Eva. During one heated dispute, he fired a gun into the ceiling and she filed a report.
Ashley continued to make allegations against Doug and claimed she felt unsafe around him and even accusing him of trying to poison her. She went as far as alleging that Doug may have poisoned and killed his first wife, Renee. Eventually, Ashley moved in with her mother in Central Park, Florida, where she later gave birth to her daughter. Initially, she did not want Doug to have contact with their child, but he filed a legal petition, and the court granted him visitation rights. For a while, the two appeared to be co-parenting on relatively stable terms. However, in November 2019, Doug filed for divorce, reportedly after discovering that his wife was involved with another man.
Ashley Benefield Claimed that She Shot Doug Benefield in Self-Defense
The couple eventually attempted to reconcile and agreed to make a fresh start. According to Ashley Benefield, they had planned to relocate to Maryland together. On September 27, 2020, Doug Benefield arrived at her mother’s home to help pack their belongings into a U-Haul truck. Ashley claimed that an argument broke out during this process, and she alleged that Doug struck her and prevented her from leaving the house. Fearing for her life, she said she shot him twice in what she described as an act of self-defense. She then fled to a neighbor’s home and used their phone to call 911.
Detectives investigating the case found several inconsistencies in Ashley’s account. For one, Doug’s gunshot wounds were located on the side of his torso, indicating that he was not facing Ashley at the time, which casts doubt on her claim of an immediate threat. Additionally, authorities noted that she had no visible injuries, which contradicted her allegations that Doug had physically assaulted her. Based on these discrepancies and other evidence, Ashley was charged with second-degree murder in November 2020. She was taken into custody for several weeks before being released on bail.
Ashley Benefield is Serving Her Sentence in Florida Today
Ashley Benefield’s trial began in July 2024, where she testified in her own defense and continued to assert that she had acted in self-defense. However, the prosecution presented conflicting evidence, and after deliberation, the jury found her guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter. Her defense team immediately sought a new trial, citing alleged juror misconduct, though no credible evidence supported the claim. In December 2024, Ashley was sentenced to 20 years in prison, followed by 10 years of probation. In February 2025, her legal team filed an appeal requesting her release on bond, but the court denied it. Now 34 years old, she is serving her sentence at the Homestead Correctional Institution in Homestead, Florida. She will be eligible for release in 2044.
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