Former ballerina convicted of manslaughter in estranged husband’s 2020 shooting

BRADENTON, Fla. (AP/WCSC) - A former ballerina has been convicted of manslaughter in the 2020 shooting death of her estranged husband in Florida.

A Manatee County jury returned the guilty verdict late Tuesday against Ashley Benefield, court records show. She had been charged with second-degree murder, but the jurors opted for a lesser offense after nearly seven hours of deliberations.

Benefield, 32, claimed that she killed her then-58-year-old estranged husband, Doug Benefield, during a September 2020 argument at her mother’s home, where she had moved from his hometown of Charleston, South Carolina after leaving him. Authorities say she shot him twice.

She now faces up to 30 years in prison because she used a firearm in the killing. A sentencing date hasn’t been set.

After the verdict, Circuit Judge Matt Whyte revoked Benefield’s $100,000 bond and ordered her taken into custody, court documents show.

Bradenton is about 30 miles south of Tampa.