A woman called the 'Black Swan Murderer,' who is on trial for killing her reportedly abusive husband, has criticized her nickname saying she was the victim.
On September 27, 2020, 32-year-old Ashley Benefield ran to her neighbor's house in Bradenton, Florida, after shooting and killing her 59-year-old husband, Doug Benefield.
They had married in 2016 after dating for only 13 days.
Background
Ashley met Doug, a father who had recently lost his wife, at Ben Carson's house in Palm Beach, Florida in August 2016.
At the time, she was 24 and he was 54.
She was working on Donald Trump's presidential campaign at the time they met.
They got married just 13 days later and soon after, they launched the American National Ballet, a dance company based in Charleston, South Carolina.
Doug's 23-year-old daughter from a previous marriage, Eva, testified that at the start of their relationship, "They were always together."
'They were lovey-dovey, PDA all the time. They never left each other's side,' she said.
After being married for a year, Doug, a retired Naval flight officer, helped Ashley start her dream dance company using his own money and connections.
He served as the CEO of the company, while Ashley became the executive director.
But soon after the company was founded, it was sued by dancers and choreographers who claimed their contracts were breached.
They were fired only weeks after being hired which led to the lawsuit.
After their marriage, Doug had his vasectomy reversed, and three months later, Ashley became pregnant with their daughter Emerson.
That’s when everything changed according to Assistant State Attorney Suzanne O'Donnell.
She said that Ashley moved from their South Carolina home to Florida to live with her mother because she was experiencing morning sickness.
From that point on, she never lived with Doug again.
They tried to maintain a long-distance relationship when she first moved to Florida and kept in touch.
Prosecutors allege that after some time of moving, Ashley Benefield started complaining about her husband.
It was also around this time the ballet company fell apart.
She began accusing Doug of poisoning her and of non-physical domestic violence.
Ashley claimed that Doug frequently gave her teas that she believed were poisoned, CBS News reported.
Detectives from the Manatee County Sheriff's Office conducted a five-week investigation but found no evidence to support her claims of abuse.
On the day he died, Doug came to Ashley's home to help her and their daughter pack.
While he was in Ashley's bedroom, he was shot four times.
After that, she ran to her neighbor and told him about the shooting.
Trial
Prosecutors now argue that killing Doug was a desperate attempt to get custody of their 2-year-old daughter at the time of the shooting.
They argued that the case is about a woman who, early in her pregnancy, decided she wanted to be a single mother and did not want the father of the child to have any visitation rights.
"This is a long story. It was a custody battle that this mother was determined to win at all costs, and the cost was Doug Benefield's life." said prosecutors.
They also said that Doug was trying his best to fix their marriage and keep their family united.
However, Ashley's defense argued that Doug was the victim.
In a motion previously filed, defense attorneys said that Doug initially showed up 'happy, energetic, and lively,' but later became 'upset, gloomy, and threatening.'
After verbally insulting his wife, the defense claims that Doug rammed her with a moving box, causing abrasions.
Neil Taylor, Ashley's attorney, argued in court that Doug Benefield was fully aware that their relationship was over on that day.
He went on to claim that Doug was manipulative and 'viewed Ashley Benefield as his property.'
He told the jury that Doug had once fired a handgun into the kitchen ceiling to make Ashley stop talking, threw a loaded gun at her, and punched their dog in the face, knocking it out.
He also mentioned that Doug often carried a hidden gun that was always ready to fire.
He claimed that after Ashley and Doug separated, Doug illegally tracked her, frequently following her without permission and even driving from out of state to keep an eye on her.
Black Swan Murderer
Ashley’s case received a lot of attention, with the media comparing her background as a ballerina to the character in Black Swan.
This resulted in the nickname, "The Black Swan Murderer."
The main character in the film Black Swan is Nina Sayers, played by Natalie Portman.
Nina is a young ballerina in a New York City ballet company who earns the coveted role of Swan Queen in their production of Swan Lake.
Ashley’s attorney, Neil Taylor, argues that the term "Black Swan" is an inaccurate description of the trial.
He claims it is merely a sensationalized phrase created by the media.
Ashley has also voiced her discomfort with the term, saying it exaggerates her life and story.
Before her trial began, Ashley spoke with reporters and shared why she disliked the nickname 'Black Swan.'
Ashley maintained that she was a victim of domestic violence inflicted by her husband.
'Black Swan has a catchy ring and it sensationalizes my life and my situation. It's sad to me that people who don't even know me have this idea of a monster when they think of me,' she said.
There are women all over the country, all over the world, who have gone through or are going through hard situations behind closed doors,' Ashley said.
Ashley now faces a minimum sentence of 25 years in prison and a maximum of life if convicted of Doug's murder after the two-week trial.
She was also seen crying in court on Tuesday as she listened to the 911 call a neighbor made shortly after she killed her estranged husband.
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