Ashley Benefield convicted of manslaughter in 'Black Swan' murder trial

In the high-profile 'Black Swan' murder trial in Manatee County, former professional ballerina Ashley Benefield has been convicted of manslaughter. Benefield was originally charged with second-degree murder for the 2020 shooting death of her estranged husband, Doug, but claimed she acted in self-defense.

After about seven hours of deliberation on Tuesday, the jury reached a late-night verdict on the lesser charge of manslaughter.

During closing arguments earlier that day, Assistant State Attorney Suzanne O'Donnell refuted Benefield's self-defense claim. She presented evidence suggesting that Doug had not physically abused Benefield until the day of the incident, September 27, 2020.

"She wasn’t saying ‘I’m so afraid of this man. Please help me, I'm a victim of domestic violence. I need help.' Not at all. She's saying ‘I want to keep my baby,’" O'Donnell argued to the jury.

In contrast, defense attorney Neil Taylor contended that Doug's behavior prior to the shooting demonstrated his abusive nature. "How would one feel sitting in their kitchen, having their husband pull out a gun and actually fire it into the ceiling of their kitchen? Can you imagine the trauma of such a statement?" Taylor said.

The shooting occurred while the couple was packing to move separately to Maryland. Ashley testified last week that Doug became violent when he noticed their items were mixed together and hit her during their argument. She said she then ran to her room, armed herself with a gun, and shot Doug when he followed her, fearing for her life.

A sentencing date has not yet been set. In Florida, manslaughter carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years, whereas a second-degree murder conviction would have resulted in 25 years to life in prison.