Suvechha Sarkar
Eva Benefield was a high school student trying to navigate life after a painful loss. However, it wasn’t long before tragedy struck again when her father, Douglas Glass Benefield, lovingly known as Doug, was killed on September 27, 2020. The shocking incident involved her stepmother, Ashley Benefield, leaving Eva to process an unimaginable grief for the second time in her young life. CBS’ ’48 Hours: The Black Swan Murder’ sheds light on Doug’s personal life, the growing tensions of the household, and how his daughter was left alone in the aftermath. It also features interviews with her family members and the officials closely related to the case.
Eva Benefield Was Still Mourning Her Mother When Doug Passed Away
Douglas Glass Benefield, lovingly known as Doug, and Renee Cousar Benefield was delighted when they welcomed their beautiful daughter, Eva Benefield, into this world sometime in 2001. From childhood, she never felt any shortage of love and support from her parents. However, she faced an unimaginable tragedy when one day she came back home and discovered her mother unresponsive. Unfortunately, Renee passed away from an undiagnosed heart ailment on December 2, 2015. Eva described how her father took on both the roles of her father and mother and promised to stay beside her as her pillar of support. She used to receive a Bible verse the very first thing in the morning from her father, which became their daily ritual.
Nine months after Renee passed away, Eva was shocked to find that her father had married Ashley Byers, who was now her stepmother. Doug explained to her that he believed she needed a motherly figure in her life. However, the relationship between her and Ashley continued to become tense, especially because the latter was only nine years older than Eva. Furthermore, Doug’s connection with his new wife became tumultuous. Things changed further when their daughter, Emerson, was born in March 2018. Despite disagreements over seeing Emerson, Eva learned that her father planned to move to Maryland, along with Ashley, her mother, Alicia Byers, and Emerson. Everything gradually seemed to be falling into place, but when, on September 28, 2020, the Bible verse from Doug never came, Eva realized something was wrong.
To her absolute shock, Eva discovered the devastating news that Ashley shot Doug twice at her mother’s home in Manatee County, Florida. Doug was rushed to the nearby hospital but passed away one hour later from his wounds. In November 2020, Ashley was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. During the trial in July 2024, Eva even testified that she never heard or saw her father being abusive towards her stepmother, as she claimed. Ultimately, justice was served when the jury convicted her on a lesser charge of Manslaughter on July 30, 2024, and acquitted her of the initial charge. She was sentenced to 20 years in prison and 10 years of probation on December 3, 2024. Ashley is currently serving her time at Homestead Correctional Institution FDC in Homestead, Florida, with her release date being June 3, 2044.
Eva Benefield Transformed Her Love For Art Into an Entrepreneurial Venture
Following the judgment on Doug’s case, Eva expressed, “My dad got the justice that he deserves.” Speaking about her half-sister, Emerson, she hopefully added, “I hope that one day she’ll grow into a strong, young woman and I’ll be able to get to know her and explain to her who her father was and — and show her all the pictures and videos and just really tell her how — how life should have been.” After losing both of her parents under heartbreaking circumstances, Eva Benefield tried to carve out a space of normalcy in her life. In 2019, she enrolled at the College of Charleston to pursue higher education. However, the emotional toll of her father’s untimely demise proved to be quite overwhelming, and she made the difficult decision to step away from her studies in 2020.
After taking time to process the trauma, Eva found her strength to return to college. In 2023, she graduated from the College of Charleston with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services. During the darkest periods of her grief, Eva turned to humor as a coping mechanism. She channeled her emotions into what she explained was “dark humor” and transformed it into her content on TikTok. While using the platform to share her personal story, one of her videos unexpectedly went viral, racking up millions of views. Eva worked in Sales at United Monograms, a fashion e-commerce company, during that time. Her longtime love for painting and fashion design gradually took center stage. With growing popularity on social media and just $15 in her bank account, she grabbed the opportunity.
Eva transformed her sketchbook of fashion drawings into authentic designs and launched her clothing line, Ghost Cowboy. As of writing, the brand has its own website and continues to grow, selling various products like T-shirts, sweatshirts, shorts, and many more. Reflecting her authentic voice and love for running, in May 2025, she simultaneously introduced another clothing line, Ghosted Run Club. In addition to her work in fashion, Eva has also ventured into podcasting. In August 2022, she launched her podcast, ‘Eva Unfiltered,’ on Spotify. It gave listeners a glimpse into her unfiltered thoughts and personal reflections on the healing journey. While only one episode has been released till now, it offers a promising start to what can become another powerful platform for Eva to share her story and inspire others.
Eva Benefield Finds Strength in Friendship and the Simple Joys of Life
In her personal life, Eva has continued to grow surrounded by the immense love from her friends. Whether it be enjoying a slow day at the beach with them or exploring different restaurants together, she is making sure to enjoy every moment of her life and cherish them with all her heart. Eva often loves running and participates in several marathons. In January 2025, she completed her run on the Daufuskie Island Marathon. Aside from that, she finds herself drawn to the soothing sounds of the crashing sea waves, helping her take a break from life. In her free time, she immerses herself in baking treats like sourdough or cookies and even goes fishing. Overall, Eva continues to be happy and serves as another reminder that life, even after profound loss, can still offer beautiful moments worth living for.
Read More: Doug Benefield Death Details and Investigation Timeline
