South Florida matriarch sentenced to life in prison for hired killing of her ex-son-in-law
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Donna AdelsonThe head of a wealthy South Florida family convicted of murdering his former son-in-law for hire was sentenced to life in prison Monday for his role in the 2014 shooting. murder for hire related to Daniel Markel.
Markel, a prominent law professor at Florida State University, was in a bitter custody battle with his ex-wife, Adelson’s daughter, when he was shot and killed in his Tallahassee home in 2014.
Adelson, 75, found guilty Following first-degree murder, conspiracy and solicitation last month. weekly trial. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for murder; He was sentenced to an additional 30 years consecutively for the other two crimes. Adelson has vowed to appeal.
In an emotional statement before sentencing in a Tallahassee courtroom, Adelson swore his innocence and cast his trial as a miscarriage of justice overseen by a jury unduly influenced by years of negative media coverage.
“What happened to Danny is inexcusable. But I am an innocent woman who was convicted of this terrible crime without evidence,” Adelson said.
“I’ve always respected the law. I’ve never had a parking ticket, but I’m going to prison for a murder I didn’t commit,” he added.
Circuit Judge Stephen Everett repeatedly interrupted Adelson and warned him that the statements showed what he called “a complete lack of remorse” for the crime.
Dressed in a purple prison jumpsuit and shackled, Adelson stood intently as Everett handed down the sentence. “You can certainly choose to deny your involvement and maintain innocence. The court feels the evidence in this case is clear,” Everett said.
The case fascinated people in Florida for more than a decade amid the sordid details of a messy divorce, tensions with wealthy relatives and custody battles that led to murder.
Adelson was the fifth person convicted of what prosecutors said was a conspiracy to kill Markel. Among those already sentenced to life in prison for the murder is Adelson’s son, Charles Adelson.
At trial, prosecutors portrayed Donna Adelson as the calculating and controlling matriarch of a wealthy South Florida family who had the means and motives to organize the murder of her former son-in-law, whom she “hated.”
Defense attorneys insisted the state did not have enough evidence to link the aging grandmother to the murder plot, instead emphasizing the roles played by others and casting suspicion on Adelson’s two adult children. Wendi Adelson participation denied He was not charged with the murder.
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Kate Payne is a syndicated member of the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. report for america is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
