Fla. Matriarch Bawled After Conviction for Masterminding Murder of Ex-Son-in-Law — and Judge Wasn’t Sympathetic

The matriarch of a wealthy Florida family has been convicted of murder for the death of her former son-in-law, who was gunned down by hired hitmen in 2014.

On Thursday, Sept. 5, after a dramatic, weeks-long trial, Donna Adelson was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and solicitation of murder in the for-hire killing of Florida State University law professor Daniel Markel in Tallahassee.

Adelson, 75, is the fifth person convicted of conspiring to murder Markel, 41, who was embroiled in a bitter custody dispute over his two sons with Donna’s daughter, Wendi Adelson. Following their 2013 divorce, Markel refused to allow Wendi to move with their two sons from Tallahassee, where he taught, to South Florida, where Donna and other family members lived, prosecutors said.

On Thursday in court, when Florida Second Judicial Circuit Judge Stephen Everett announced that the jury had found Donna guilty of first-degree murder, she yelled out, “Oh my God!” and began sobbing and shaking in her seat, according to video from the Tallahassee Democrat.

“Mrs. Adelson, control yourself,” Judge Everett admonished her.

Donna threw her head back and kept mouthing the words, “Oh my God,” as the judge read the rest of the verdict out.

When Donna continued to sob and bend over repeatedly in her seat, the judge asked the bailiff to escort the jurors to the jury room.

“Mrs. Adelson, while this was not the outcome I’m sure that you desired, there will not be any further outbursts in front of the jury,” he said once the jurors had left the courtroom. 

“If you cannot control yourself, I am going to have to determine if you will be removed from the remainder of this process,” he said. “Do you understand what I am saying to you?”

Asking if she needed “a moment to collect” herself, the judge gave her a two-minute break. “Please give her tissues if she needs them,” he said, as tears streamed down her face and she continued to sob and speak quietly to her attorneys.

Deadly Plot

Wrought with family drama, long-held secrets, and ugly accusations, the case centers around Markel’s July 18, 2014, murder, when he was shot twice in the head at point-blank range in his Tallahassee garage. He was rushed to a local hospital and died 14 hours later.

Prosecutors alleged that Donna, whose family owns a lucrative dentistry practice, masterminded and helped fund the contract killing, which was estimated to cost more than $100,000, according to court documents, CNN reports. She “hated” Markel because he refused to allow the children to move nearly 400 miles across the state.

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In 2023, Donna’s son, Florida periodontist Charlie Adelson, 47, was found guilty of the same crimes as his mom: first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and solicitation to commit murder.

Charlie’s former girlfriend Katherine Magbanua, and the two men hired to kill Markel — Latin Kings gang leader Luis Rivera and Sigfredo Garcia, the father of Magbanua’s children — were also sentenced to prison in connection with the murder-for-hire plot.

Wendi has denied any involvement with the plot and has never been charged.

Donna was arrested in Nov. 2023 just as she and her husband, dentist Harvey Adelson, were about to board a one-way flight to flee to Vietnam, a non-extradition country, police said. She pleaded not guilty.

The judge has not yet set a sentencing date for Donna.

But Markel’s parents told the judge they hope she gets a long sentence.

“I wish her to live to 120, alone in her jail cell,” Markel’s father, Phil Markel, said in court, USA Today reports. “I wish that every day of her remaining days she thinks about the harm she has caused so many.”

Turning to Donna, he said, “Was it worth it?”