A Florida court has found former ballerina Ashley Benefield guilty of manslaughter over the shooting death of her estranged husband in 2020.
Ashley Benefield, 32, who had been at the center of what was being dubbed the “Black Swan” murder trial, was found guilty by a jury for the death of her husband, Doug Benefield, after nearly seven hours of deliberation.
She had been charged with second-degree murder, but the jurors decided on the lesser manslaughter offense. But she still faces up to 30 years in prison as she used a firearm in the killing.
She claimed that she killed her husband during an argument at her mother’s home, where she had moved from South Carolina after leaving him.
Ashley Benefield stated that she was acting in self-defense, having been trapped in an abusive relationship by her husband, who—her attorneys argued at the trial—was manipulative and controlling.
According to prosecutor Suzanne O’Donnell, however, Ashley Benefield had decided early on in her relationship, when she became pregnant, that she wanted to be a single mother.
When she encountered resistance from her 58-year-old husband, she proceeded to pursue any means to attain her goal, eventually killing her husband and claiming self-defense, O’Donnell said.
“This defendant used domestic violence and allegations of it to make progress on her goal. She wanted sole custody of her child at all costs.”
Ashley Benefield fatally wounded her husband over what the prosecution stated was a child custody battle.
Authorities said that she shot him twice.
Following the verdict, the presiding judge revoked Ashley’s $100,000 bond. She was remanded into custody of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.
A sentencing date has yet to be announced.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.