Former professional ballerina shoots and kills husband during Florida custody battle
Yesterday, Fox News in South West Florida reported that a former professional ballet dancer was charged with the shooting murder of her husband when a custody battle over the couple’s child turned deadly. Ashley Benefield, 28, was charged with second-degree murder for shooting and killing her estranged husband, 59-year-old Doug Benefield. The shots rang out slightly before 7 p.m. on September 27 in a residence located in the 11300 block of White Rock Terrace in Bradenton, Florida.
Reportedly, the former ballerina fired four shots while her husband’s back was turned to her, but only two of those four bullets reached their intended target. Following the shooting, the victim was transported to a local hospital where he later died.
The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, headquartered in Bradenton, reported that Ashley shot Doug while the two were embroiled in a domestic argument and that she claimed she shot him while he was attacking her.
However, detectives found no evidence that she was acting in self-defense when she fired multiple shots at her husband. She claimed he was attacking her, but detectives found no signs that she had been physically abused.
The couple had been separated and were in the midst of a custody battle involving their daughter. Ashley was staying at her mother’s home in the Central Park neighborhood, while Doug resided at another address. Doug came over to see Ashley that day and were the only ones at the Central Park home when the shooting occurred.
Detectives spent weeks reviewing the case and developed probable cause to issue a Second-Degree Murder warrant for Ashley’s arrest. After her attorneys were notified, she turned herself in at the Manatee County Jail earlier this month.
Fox News reported that that both Doug and Ashley had been active in the ballet scene and with the American National Ballet. A post on the American National Ballet Facebook page describes Ashley Benefield as “a proud Maryland Youth Ballet graduate and retired professional ballerina.”
Court records show that Ashley had gone to great lengths to keep Doug away from their child. About two years ago, upon discovering she was pregnant, she started filing domestic violence claims against Doug.
“It appears that the main focus of these complaints was to keep the child away from Douglas,” the affidavit states.
Recently, Ashley had tried to file an injunction to keep Doug away from their daughter, but the judge in the case found that her story of abuse did not have “a scintilla of truth,” the court document states. ~ New York Post
Things seemed to come to a boil for Ashley after a Florida judge ordered visitation rights for Doug, and, “at this point, it appeared Ashley had exhausted all legal means to keep the child away from Douglas before the shooting,” according to Bradenton.com.
(Source: Manatee County Sheriff’s Office)
~ Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today / Connect with Richard on Facebook and Twitter
