Dateline NBC episode Deadly Dance, exploring the 'Black Swan' case, has explored the murder of Doug Benefield at the hands of his wife Ashley Benefield, a former ballerina star. Dateline correspondent Andrea Canning has reported on the case as the episode premiered on November 15, 2024, at 9/8c on NBC.
Ashely reportedly killed Doug at their Florida home after the couple had a fight. As she stated, Ashley Benefield had fired a gun at her husband in self-defense when he assaulted her. But the prosecution alleged it to be a premeditated act of murder.
The incident took place on September 27, 2020, and Ashley Benefield was later charged with second-degree murder. However, some of the charges were reduced and she is currently awaiting her sentencing. The official synopsis of Deadly Swan reads:
"A former ballerina falls in love with a man 30-years her senior, but their love story quickly spirals out of control after accusations of abuse. Did she shoot her husband in self-defense or was it murder?"
How did Doug Benefield die?
As reported by Dateline NBC, Doug Benefield, who was then 59 years old, was found dead in his home at Lakewood Ranch, Florida. Initial investigation revealed that Doug's estranged wife Ashley Benefield was the one to shoot him.
Officers working the case were left to figure out the motive behind the sinister deed- whether it was a pre-planned murder to get rid of a toxic relationship or just an act of self-defense. Sara Murawski from the American National Ballet has said in a statement to Dateline:
"They were the most in love couple I think I’ve ever met in my life."
As multiple sources have confirmed, Doug and Ashley's romance had a lot of sparkle in the initial years of marriage. But with time, things grew sour and there were allegations of abuse and toxicity in the relationship.
Did a toxic relationship and troubled pasts have anything to do with the murder?
Doug and Ashley met back in 2016 and got married shortly after. The 30-year age gap did not bother them at that time.
Ashley used to be a ballerina before Doug came into her life. She also did modeling back in the day. According to her statements, Dough was controlling and also abused her at times.
Over the years, there have been reports of toxic developments in their marriage. Even their troubled pasts interfered in their relationship. As Ashley Benefield told in her testimony, their fights took violent turns sometimes.
Doug would even hit her and threaten to take his own life. On the night of the murder, he tried to block Ashley Benefield as she was trying to leave the house after a fight. In the heat of the moment, she fired the gun at him in self-defense.
Ashley had reportedly been subject to abuse and domestic violence for a very long time. She even sought legal action against her husband and was constantly living in fear. However, her injunction against Doug was unfortunately denied by the judge and things got worse, according to her statements.
What did the investigation reveal?
When Ashley was faced with questions from the prosecutors, it was revealed that she was feeding a different version of her shooting. Moreover, the bullet's trajectory further confirmed that her statement was not aligned with what happened at the crime scene.
According to the prosecution, the story of self-defense narrated by Ashley Benefield was just an eye-wash. Her real motive was to obtain sole custody of their daughter. However, the defense argued that Ashley did what she had to do to protect herself.
It was self-defense in a violent culmination of a fight. The attorney even stated that her multiple attempts to seek help from the authorities were disregarded and eventually turned down.
What happened to Ashley Benefield?
The deliberation took a lot of time and Ashley Benefield was consequently found guilty of manslaughter. According to the jury's decision, self-defense had to be ruled out following the analysis of the shooting method.
However, there was not enough proof to convict Ashley of second-degree murder. Her bond was revoked and she was immediately taken into custody. It was really difficult for the jury to decide whether it was a case of self-defense or just premeditated cold-blooded murder.
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However, multiple witnesses gave statements. The involvement of domestic violence gave a rather emotional angle to the investigation. Currently, Ashley is waiting to hear her sentence.
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