20/20 - Season 2026 Episode 1 - Meddler or Murderer? - video Dailymotion

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20/20 - Season 2026 Episode 1 - Meddler or Murderer?

Transcript

00:00:01It's another busy, bustling Monday evening at Miami International Airport.

00:00:05But on this night, you're a fly on the wall.

00:00:12As both police and FBI agents are moments from a major bust.

00:00:18And their target is an unlikely suspect.

00:00:22A 73-year-old grandmother who's accused of being the mastermind of a murder.

00:00:30Authorities believe she's just moments from making her escape.

00:00:35Her one-way trip to Vietnam stopped cold, right there on the jetway, as police body cameras roll.

00:00:41Incriminating evidence, says former prosecutor Matt Murphy, who breaks it down for us.

00:00:46By effectuating the arrest at the gate, they eliminate that as a defense.

00:00:50Like, oh, I wasn't actually going to leave. She was leaving.

00:00:52I mean, that's her husband, bags packed, tickets bought.

00:00:55Cell phones generate so much evidence in murder cases. They're trained.

00:01:05You never let a criminal suspect have an opportunity to delete anything.

00:01:08Everyone can be seated. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury.

00:01:27The state of Florida versus Donna Adelson.

00:01:30Now, that same Florida grandmother is on trial for that murder.

00:01:34Good morning, everybody.

00:01:36Prosecutors alleging Donna Adelson is the architect behind a criminal conspiracy.

00:01:41A conspiracy to hire a hit man to kill her former son-in-law, Dan Markell.

00:01:49So how is it that Donna finds herself there in that courtroom?

00:01:52The jury hears what begins as a great American success story.

00:01:55This was a family who had it all.

00:01:57You'll hear during this trial that the Adelson family is a very tight-knit family.

00:02:02The defendant, her son Charlie Adelson, and her husband Harvey Adelson actually all worked together at their family's dental practice.

00:02:11She was the details person. And she managed much more.

00:02:16She was the matriarch. And a domineering one at that.

00:02:25If you lived in South Florida long before Dan Markell was murdered, you would have known the Adelsons for their dental practice, the Adelson Institute.

00:02:34Harvey was an extremely successful dentist. He runs at the Adelson Institute of Dentistry.

00:02:40Harvey Adelson is someone I've known my entire life. He's a dentist, and he was married to Donna, and he had three kids, Robert, Charlie, and Wendy.

00:02:50Charlie went to dentist school, got his degree, came back, and then he was helping Harvey in his practice.

00:02:59The Adelson family dental practice did not include older son Robert. He's a New York-based physician who, for years, has been estranged from the family.

00:03:06Wendy was always an all-star. She was incredibly bright as a child. She did phenomenally well in high school, and incredibly smart, and gregarious, and well-loved by everybody.

00:03:19Wendy Adelson does something a little different than everyone in her family's. She goes into law.

00:03:26Wendy has an internship in Washington, D.C., where another young lawyer is also just starting out.

00:03:31Danny was a very warm person to start with, with everybody. He never greeted people with a handshake. It was always a hug.

00:03:43Dan is the only son of Ruth and Phil Markell who raised him in a conservative Jewish home in Toronto, Canada.

00:03:48A young woman named Wendy Adelson searched him on J-Date, the Jewish dating service, and she was sitting with her mother, Donna, searching for a candidate for her to meet.

00:04:05And so they're looking up Dan Markell. She was a very warm, she's a very attractive person.

00:04:11And it was a beautiful thing to see Danny in love.

00:04:17Wendy and Dan's relationship moves quickly, and in less than a year, they're engaged.

00:04:21But as soon as they tie the knot, it becomes clear who's calling the shots in this family.

00:04:27It's not Dan or even Wendy. It's Wendy's mother, Donna.

00:04:30She was extremely controlling. She had very strong opinions about all the decisions in Wendy Adelson's life, whether it be about her career, her relationships, or even purchasing a home.

00:04:48After their wedding, Wendy Adelson and Dan Markell moved to Tallahassee, the capital of Florida.

00:04:53Dan and Wendy did both get jobs at Florida State University Law School.

00:04:59They lived in Betton Hills, which is a neighborhood in the center of Tallahassee. It's quite an affluent community.

00:05:06I know they owned a house, and they both lived there together with their two boys.

00:05:11Danny was a great father. With all his accomplishments, to me, I'm the proudest of him as a father.

00:05:19His boys were the entire world to him.

00:05:23While Dan is thriving in Tallahassee, Wendy is lamenting the state of her marriage.

00:05:28She reveals her feelings in this 2015 episode of the podcast, Writing Class Radio.

00:05:34Our marriage dissolved after the children arrived, as the loneliness of being married to someone that didn't view me as an equal crept in.

00:05:41By 2012, it's during one of his trips to a conference in New York City that Wendy calls Dan to deliver devastating news.

00:05:49She says, I'm leaving. It's over.

00:05:53Dan says, please don't do this. We can still work this out.

00:05:58He gets on a flight to come back to Tallahassee.

00:06:02He walks into the bedroom, and there was divorce papers on the bed.

00:06:07Less than seven years after exchanging wedding vows, Wendy Adelson and Dan Markell are exchanging accusations in divorce court.

00:06:17The divorce got really nasty, and I think the boiling point was when Wendy couldn't leave Tallahassee, couldn't relocate to South Florida.

00:06:24Dan wouldn't agree to it.

00:06:25Dan wouldn't agree to it.

00:06:26Which means Donna's grandchildren will remain almost 500 miles away from her.

00:06:31With Wendy and Dan's divorce now finalized, the focus for the Adelson family becomes custody of the two boys and where they will live.

00:06:39So Donna Adelson, being the doting grandma that she says she is, was upset.

00:06:48Donna began this campaign. She wrote these lengthy emails to Wendy.

00:06:54Donna refers to Dan Markell as gibbers, which is clearly a derogatory term.

00:07:00It's time to take control of your life and not let gibbers think he's won anything by having you remain in Tallahassee.

00:07:11A month before their next court appearance, Donna sends Wendy a long email suggesting ways to needle her ex-husband.

00:07:19Let's show this what will make him absolutely miserable.

00:07:23You know his weak points, money, religion, control.

00:07:30Then Donna suggests to Wendy that they baptize their grandsons and dress them in Nazi uniforms.

00:07:37A stunning proposition from someone of the Jewish faith.

00:07:40Let gibbers know that your children will be baptized in the Catholic Church.

00:07:45That's when, in at least one of those emails, Donna puts her money where her mouth is.

00:07:51We plan to make a financial offer to him to allow this relocation.

00:07:57She suggested to Wendy that they should go three ways to pay Danny a million dollars.

00:08:04Her and Harvey, Charlie and Wendy.

00:08:06Gibbers hasn't beaten the Adelson family yet.

00:08:10You have a very strong family behind you. Just remember that.

00:08:13I don't think at this point money, threats of Catholic school, you name it, were going to convince Dan to be separated from his kids.

00:08:23During Wendy and Dan's nasty custody fight, Dan says he discovered Donna Adelson was telling her grandchildren their father was stupid.

00:08:30In fact, things appear to be coming to a head when Dan goes as far as filing a motion to prevent Donna from having unsupervised visits with her grandchildren.

00:08:40It would be the last motion that Dan would ever file.

00:08:43Dan Markell was known as Danny to his friends and family. The last day of his life began like any other day of his that summer.

00:09:06Hey, Wendy, it's Danny. Good morning. It's 9 o'clock on Friday.

00:09:12He woke up. He took his two young sons to preschool and then he went to the gym to work out.

00:09:21After finishing his workout, he returned home.

00:09:23As he pulls into his driveway around 11 a.m., shots ring out.

00:09:29He shot in his face and head and a neighbor finds him slumped over in the front seat, but still breathing.

00:09:38As I looked inside, I saw a bloody head and I hollered immediately, Danny, what happened?

00:09:46And at that point, I knew that I had to get the emergency medical team there as quickly as I could.

00:09:579-1. Want to see the address of your emergency?

00:10:00It's right next door to my house.

00:10:03OK. What's going on with him?

00:10:06He's not responding to me.

00:10:10Once the paramedics arrive, he's quickly rushed to the hospital.

00:10:14Police tracked down his ex-wife, Wendy, who's out to lunch with friends, and they bring her into the police station.

00:10:21There was a shooting at your ex-husband's home.

00:10:25Oh, my God.

00:10:27OK?

00:10:29What happened?

00:10:31Well, before we get into everything, I have to establish where you were and who you were with and so forth.

00:10:39OK.

00:10:40I just don't understand.

00:10:43How could this really happen?

00:10:47She sits down for hours, and then during that time, the police look at her phone.

00:10:52They look at her ID.

00:10:53They swab her for fingerprints.

00:10:55Everything that you would do with a potential suspect.

00:10:58My ex-husband caused me a lot of grief.

00:11:01I would never do something like that.

00:11:07I want to figure out who this is.

00:11:10Talking with police, Wendy drops a hint.

00:11:13She tells them she just had another bad breakup.

00:11:16This one with her new boyfriend.

00:11:18So police bring him in for an interview as well.

00:11:19Did he have a motive?

00:11:21Jeffrey LeCasse comes in to talk to police willingly three times.

00:11:26He keeps coming back because it seems that he has a story to tell.

00:11:34Your name did come up.

00:11:35Of course.

00:11:36Because you were associated at some point with Wendy.

00:11:39Of course.

00:11:41Spent a lot of time with Wendy.

00:11:43I was in love with this girl, man.

00:11:45I was surprised you guys didn't call me earlier, though, because I probably said a hundred times in public that I like to kick his ass because he can't believe it.

00:11:51He's right up front about saying that he didn't like this guy.

00:11:54He also has an ironclad alibi.

00:11:56He was out of town.

00:11:59You know, right away something clicks in his head.

00:12:02And he seems to say, I think I know what happened.

00:12:06I'm concerned about my safety with what I'm going to tell you, to be honest.

00:12:09So, Denny Markell just got killed and I don't want to be next.

00:12:12I'm sorry if that sounds paranoid, but I do have some ideas.

00:12:17In his police interview, LaCasse points to Wendy's family, her parents, and specifically her brother Charlie, the dentist.

00:12:26The family desperately wants her back in South Florida.

00:12:30They hate Danny in a way.

00:12:33I've never seen this kind of obsession.

00:12:37Like, their hobby is hating Danny.

00:12:38As police are learning about all this bad blood between the Adelsons and their former in-law, Dan Markell, there's this very telling moment in Wendy's police interview when she calls her mother to break the news that Dan had been shot.

00:12:53Hi, Mom. How's it going? I need you to sit down.

00:12:55So, during this police interview, Wendy tells Donna that Dan has been shot. He's not expected to live.

00:13:04Danny has been shot.

00:13:05There was a point where she was just kind of saying she was relieved to find that her mom was surprised at the news.

00:13:15Well, my parents sounded really surprised, so it's at least a relief. My parents would be angry, but they're not capable of this.

00:13:23And that's not all. Wendy makes this startling comment about something her brother Charlie once said to her.

00:13:29My brother, the one whose name is Charlie, the one I'm really close to, he makes a lot of jokes and bad taste, and it was a joke he made.

00:13:38You know, I looked into hiring a hitman, and it was cheaper to get you this TV, so instead I got you this TV.

00:13:44It was my divorce present.

00:13:46Okay.

00:13:47It's such a horrible thing to sit.

00:13:53Would you think that this guy, Charlie, would even be capable of doing something like this?

00:13:56No. No.

00:13:57Let's just talk.

00:13:58He's the joker.

00:13:59Okay.

00:14:01But Wendy's former boyfriend, Jeff Lacoste, told police that when she related the account to him, there was nothing funny about her.

00:14:08She told me that Charlie had looked into having Danny killed in the summer of 2013. She meant it dead serious.

00:14:17I could just say, I would be investigating Charlie Adelson.

00:14:21I don't know if he did this, but if you're looking at somebody, don't miss him.

00:14:27Meanwhile, Dan's parents rush to Tallahassee, but they're too late. He dies less than 24 hours after being shot.

00:14:41I had wished that I could at least hold his hand before he passed away. I regret that very much.

00:14:51Dan's death was felt by so many. There were headlines all across Florida that covered his death, his murder, and the memorial for him because he touched so many lives.

00:15:06I was unbelievably moved. Just the outpouring of love for him.

00:15:13After Dan was murdered, the children went back to South Florida with Wendy.

00:15:24They're all living their lives down there. The children are growing up.

00:15:28They have adamantly denied any connection to the homicide or any involvement.

00:15:35It appears that the Adelson's get what they wanted after all.

00:15:38Wendy finds a new job in Miami, and she enrolls her sons in school there.

00:15:41All this leaving Tallahassee police with just one single lead on the crime scene.

00:15:48You said there was another vehicle that you saw driving away?

00:15:52Yes, and it left the scene rapidly. It looked sort of like a Prius.

00:15:56The scene there, the crime scene, left no trace of the killers. There was no fingerprints, no DNA, no bullet casing. Nothing was stolen. And so police began to suspect that this may be a professional killing.

00:16:10One path is to track down that light colored Prius that the neighbor saw fleeing from the scene.

00:16:31And it left the scene rapidly. It looked sort of like a Prius.

00:16:36Police take a particular interest in a green Toyota Prius seen at the gym Dan worked out at the morning he was shot.

00:16:42He exercises, comes back out, goes to his car and the same vehicle which hasn't left the parking lot is then seen pulling out of the parking lot following behind the victim.

00:16:54We also find that car on video on a bus camera pulling into the victim's neighborhood or thereabouts shortly before the murder.

00:17:04And they notice there's a sun pass. It's the toll road pass.

00:17:09When police pulled those toll records, it led them to a hole in the wall rental agency in Miami that rents mostly hybrids.

00:17:15They find a contract was signed and that leads police to the men who rented that green Prius.

00:17:21Investigators are able to figure out who rented this green Prius.

00:17:25They track it back to the rental application and on it they see both names.

00:17:29Luis Rivera and Sigfredo Garcia, who is listed as Luis's brother.

00:17:35Sigfredo Garcia was a low level criminal, had some drug arrests down in Miami.

00:17:40Luis Rivera, however, more of a hardened criminal, more hardened criminal involved in a lot of gang activity.

00:17:48They rented it in their names with their phone numbers with a sun pass.

00:17:52They had their phones on while they were driving up there.

00:17:55Essentially they just wrote a map for the cops.

00:18:01After tracking the two men from Miami all the way to Dan Markell's neighborhood in Tallahassee,

00:18:05investigators are convinced Garcia and Rivera committed the murder.

00:18:10We also have the ATM video where on the day of the homicide,

00:18:14the two killers are seen driving through an ATM in that Pine Micah Prius.

00:18:20The police, they had a substantial amount of information to begin collecting a warrant to arrest these guys.

00:18:30But the question still not answered is why?

00:18:34How did these two people, Sigfredo and Luis, have any connection to Dan Markell?

00:18:40They discover that there is a link and there's a mysterious woman who will be connected to this case.

00:18:52That link is Katie McBanawa.

00:18:55She shares a child with Sigfredo Garcia.

00:18:57And get this, she's the former girlfriend of Charlie Adelson.

00:19:00Katie becomes this conduit, this connection point between the Adelson's and Dan Markell's murder.

00:19:07Absent her, you have nothing that links any of these people directly.

00:19:13Investigators form a picture of a complicated web involving two accused hitmen, a female go-between and the Adelson family.

00:19:21So investigators set out to follow the money.

00:19:25Investigators discovered that in the months after the murder, Katie McBanawa received some checks from the Adelson Institute.

00:19:32She made some rather large cash deposits and those checks were signed by none other than Donna Adelson.

00:19:39With the Adelson's now firmly on their radar, investigators in South Florida put the family under surveillance.

00:19:46Because it was Donna who signed those checks to Katie, investigators are now wondering if she's the mastermind behind this alleged plot.

00:19:54So they come up with an audacious plan to confront the family matriarch outside her luxury condo building in Miami Beach.

00:20:01She's got sunglasses on, she's got a black crossbody bag and her hair is pulled back in a ponytail.

00:20:07Donna Adelson is approached on the street by a man she's never seen before.

00:20:12This person turns out to be an undercover FBI agent.

00:20:17Excuse me, Mrs. Adelson? How you doing? Just want to give you this.

00:20:21Um, listen.

00:20:23Who are you? You're scary.

00:20:24No, don't be scared.

00:20:26And he says that he was the brother of one of the assailants and that he needed something a little extra to take care.

00:20:33He helped your family with this problem you guys had up north. He's going through some rough times.

00:20:37The undercover detective says that I want $5,000 for you to help my family.

00:20:46Well, this will explain it.

00:20:51He hands her a piece of paper that has a press release of Dan's murder on it.

00:20:55And it has a phone number for her to call to make that transaction with the money.

00:21:01When Donna calls her son Charlie to tell him what happened, it's a cryptic conversation.

00:21:05I've got some, I've got some paperwork hand delivered to me.

00:21:12Does it involve me or other people?

00:21:14Well, probably both of them. You probably have a general idea of what I'm talking about.

00:21:20All right.

00:21:22So let's, let's just find some time to talk to each other.

00:21:24She doesn't use the words murder or Dan Markell. She just refers to it as, you know about it. We'll talk later. It may have to do with the two of us.

00:21:37And Donna eventually calls the undercover agent.

00:21:41Hello.

00:21:42I have to tell you, I mean, this is important. I, I have been so stressed out because I don't know your friend who is in jail. I've never met him.

00:21:54Let's stop around. Okay. You know who Katie is. And you know that Katie has somebody that knows that and they took care of a problem for you people.

00:22:03You talk to the right people. You talk to people. You make this 5k come to me. That's all I need. Just do it and get it to me.

00:22:09I'll call you back.

00:22:12Despite those suspicious sounding phone calls, prosecutors ultimately feel they don't have enough evidence to move forward against Katie or any of the Adelsons.

00:22:20But they do have more than enough to pull the trigger on arresting the suspected hitmen.

00:22:25One of the men accused of killing FSU law professor Dan Markell is now behind bars.

00:22:30On May 25th, 2016, the news breaks in Tallahassee.

00:22:33Sigfredo Garcia is arrested for the murder of Dan Markell and soon after Luis Rivera is also charged for the murder.

00:22:42We can provide additional information on this investigation.

00:22:46Just eight days later, police released the probable cause affidavit for Sigfredo Garcia.

00:22:51In it, investigators allege his involvement in this murder stemmed from the desperate desire of the Adelson family to relocate Wendy and the children to South Florida.

00:23:04It's all over the news. So there's some feeling of, oh, wow.

00:23:08We just pray that those involved have to pay the price for what they've done.

00:23:14Then, in October 2016, there's this dramatic breakthrough.

00:23:19Prosecutors announce a plea deal with Luis Rivera.

00:23:22They say he's ready to reveal who else he says was involved in Dan Markell's murder.

00:23:27Facts and why you don't get it done.

00:23:29Facts and why you don't get it done.

00:23:32Facts and why you don't get it done.

00:23:36Good luck, Donna.

00:23:40Before she was at the center of a murder investigation.

00:23:43And we now meet Donna Adelson from Coral Springs, Florida.

00:23:46I want to hear all about you, Donna. Let's go.

00:23:48Donna Adelson was center stage on Wheel of Fortune in October 1989.

00:23:53Donna. F.

00:23:55Yes.

00:23:56Mischief maker.

00:23:57But now, Donna is suspected of making much more than just mischief.

00:24:06Excuse me, this is Adelson?

00:24:08Investigators have targeted Donna Adelson as the alleged mastermind

00:24:11in a murder-for-hire plot against her own former son-in-law, Dan Markell.

00:24:15But to make the case against her, investigators have to construct a trail

00:24:20leading from the two alleged hitmen directly to the Adelson family.

00:24:23It's a murder case.

00:24:24And you can compare it, I would say, to a major drug deal.

00:24:28You get the lower-hanging fruit, right?

00:24:30The people selling the drugs, they're not, they're selling it.

00:24:33But they're getting it from somewhere.

00:24:35They went up the ladder like you would do in a drug case.

00:24:39And in 2016, the first domino was about to fall.

00:24:41One of those alleged hitmen, Luis Rivera, decides to take a plea deal

00:24:47and confesses in exchange for a lesser sentence of second-degree murder.

00:24:53You solemnly swear or affirm that the evidence you are about to give me

00:24:57is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

00:25:00Yes, sir.

00:25:02But Donna's name never comes up when he reveals what he claims

00:25:05his friend Sigfredo Garcia told him before they killed Dan Markell together.

00:25:09And he showed you a picture of Markell.

00:25:11Markell.

00:25:12And said y'all were gonna go kill him.

00:25:14Mm-hmm.

00:25:16Rivera says they've already been given $5,000 in traveling expenses

00:25:19from a mysterious person that Garcia would only refer to as the lady.

00:25:22The Rivera plea deal was important because although he was a gang member

00:25:34and part of this murder, everything he said was corroborated by the other evidence.

00:25:39Went in Markell's house.

00:25:41Garcia jumps out, goes around the car, where he's driving.

00:25:44Shot him twice, got in the car, we left.

00:25:47He calls Katie.

00:25:48We had dumped a gun and he said, everything is done.

00:25:53Make sure you have my money.

00:25:55I'm on my way.

00:25:57Once Luis Rivera starts talking and gives all of this information to police,

00:26:02they now have enough to bring down their next suspect, Catherine McBanua.

00:26:08Well, who is Catherine McBanua?

00:26:10Well, oh, she happened to be Charlie's ex-girlfriend.

00:26:13She was the connection between Charlie Adelson and those two hit men

00:26:17that actually came up to Tallahassee to murder Dan.

00:26:21Police in Florida arresting a single mom,

00:26:24accusing her of arranging the killing of a prominent Florida state law professor.

00:26:28Which brings us to the trial.

00:26:30Both Sigfredo Garcia and Katie McBanua stand accused of murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

00:26:35Anybody save it, please?

00:26:37It was a big deal that this was going to trial five years after Dan Markell's murder.

00:26:42Sigfredo Garcia and Catherine McBanua are tried together.

00:26:46It's a high profile case that's garnering attention across the world.

00:26:52We'll start with the state of Florida.

00:26:55Garcia and Meg Bano are on trial, but it seems like the prosecution is intent on making a case against Charlie too.

00:27:02For example, listen to Wendy Adelson herself, subpoenaed by the state as she testifies about Katie and Charlie.

00:27:09Did you say how you know that she was dating my brother?

00:27:15Is it fair to say that your brother is very protective of you?

00:27:18I think that's fair to say.

00:27:20Did he ever joke about hiring a hit man?

00:27:23He did make that joke.

00:27:24Then perhaps the most critical testimony about Charlie comes from his former girlfriend, Katie McBanua herself.

00:27:35Testifying in her own defense, Katie takes the stand and denies she had any involvement in the plot.

00:27:41Did you have anything to do with the murder of Dan Markell?

00:27:45No, ma'am.

00:27:46Did you get the father of your children, Mr. Garcia, to commit a murder on behalf of Mr. Charlie Adelson?

00:27:56No, ma'am.

00:27:57But look who she does implicate.

00:28:00Her former boyfriend, Charlie.

00:28:03Based on everything you've seen, do you think Charlie was involved in this?

00:28:06Yes.

00:28:08Despite her denials, eventually both McBanua and Garcia are convicted on all charges.

00:28:13But the next domino is about to fall.

00:28:15Prosecutors waste no time working their way up that proverbial ladder,

00:28:19alleging that Charlie Adelson hired those two hit men to drive to Tallahassee to kill Dan Markell.

00:28:26And a big step to building that case comes in early 2022.

00:28:31New evidence against Charlie.

00:28:33A secretly recorded videotape of a meeting years earlier

00:28:37between him and Katie McBanua at a South Florida restaurant.

00:28:41Technology allowed the FBI to enhance the audio years after the recording.

00:28:45But you still have to listen carefully to make it out.

00:28:47Are you going to charge me?

00:28:48Charge me.

00:28:49He's like, if I thought they had enough evidence, I'd be at the airport suggesting that he would skip town if he thought there was more evidence out there against him.

00:29:15there against him. A grand jury has now indicted Charlie Adelson in Markel's death. Charlie is

00:29:22arrested. Adelson is charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and

00:29:28solicitation to commit murder. He pleads not guilty to all charges. From inside the Leon County

00:29:33Detention Facility, Charlie Adelson made his first appearance before a Leon County Judge Tuesday.

00:29:39Now Charlie will go on trial himself, but before he does, his defense attorney drops a bombshell.

00:29:45Charlie is going to take the stand, leaving everyone to wonder, might he implicate someone

00:29:50else in the family to save his own skin?

00:30:01Prosecutors have long believed there was a larger conspiracy to kill Dan Markel, with Donna Adelson

00:30:06as the ringleader. But on one October day in 2023, it's her son Charlie they put on trial

00:30:12for his role.

00:30:14This defendant carried out his plan to hire a hitman to kill Dan Markel. He conspired and

00:30:22he solicited Catherine McManua to get this murder done.

00:30:25They tell jurors that everything Charlie did, including plotting and payments, involves his

00:30:31mother, Donna.

00:30:33Donna is the overbearing matriarch who nags everyone to death. And this defendant fancied himself

00:30:39not the savior of this family. Equal parts black sheep and mama's boy.

00:30:44I was in courtroom 3G for Charlie Adelson's trial to watch the prosecution make their case

00:30:51against him. I don't think that Tallahassee has seen a bigger story than this. Many people

00:30:57knew Dan Markel and many people knew Wendy Adelson as well.

00:31:00And a key part of the prosecution's case, the already convicted Katie McManua takes the stand.

00:31:09Remember, in her own trial, she had denied being part of the plot. Now, she does a complete 180.

00:31:14You may take your seat.

00:31:15She testifies she was in on the murder all along, and she claims it was orchestrated by Charlie,

00:31:21starting nine months before the actual killing.

00:31:24He got in the car with me, and he asked me a question. Do you know anybody that can harm

00:31:31someone?

00:31:33And did you know anybody that could harm someone?

00:31:35Yes, ma'am, I did.

00:31:36Who was that?

00:31:37Sigfredo.

00:31:38So you knew that the person that was going to be initially harmed was Wendy's husband?

00:31:44Yes, ma'am.

00:31:45Katie also testifies about how she says Charlie directed her to transfer the money to the hitman.

00:31:51And where did you get the money from to do that?

00:31:55From Charlie Adelson.

00:31:57It's compelling testimony against Charlie, but his defense attorney, Daniel Rashbaum,

00:32:01has a shocking explanation for jurors. He tells them Charlie wasn't part of the plot to kill Dan Markel.

00:32:07Instead, he was a victim of extortion that happened after the killing.

00:32:12You will learn that Charlie Adelson was told if he didn't pay within the next 48 hours,

00:32:18he or one of his family members would be next.

00:32:21It was a jaw-drop moment.

00:32:24I'm scratching my head thinking, is that going to work?

00:32:27Is that going to fly in this courtroom?

00:32:29Is the defense ready to call its next witness?

00:32:32Yes, Your Honor.

00:32:33We call Charlie Adelson.

00:32:35This is the biggest moment of the trial.

00:32:38Charlie testifying in his own defense.

00:32:41Please raise your right hand.

00:32:42The defense attorney wanted to have him on the stand as long as possible to really show these jurors all of the details.

00:32:50How do you feel right now?

00:32:52I'm really nervous.

00:32:53My whole life depends on it.

00:32:55The whole key was going to be his testimony.

00:32:58It was going to be Charlie's testimony and then cross-examination.

00:33:02She's like, just come sit down. I need to talk to you.

00:33:04But Katie denies it, but Adelson tells the jury about a conversation with Meg Banua the night of the murder.

00:33:11He claims she said that Danny Markell's killers knew that Adelson's had money and the murder was to get at that cash.

00:33:18If he didn't agree to pay them off, he and his family would be next.

00:33:22And I'm like, Katie, I'm not going to be part of paying for a murder. This is insane.

00:33:27And she's like, look, if you don't pay in 48 hours, they will kill you.

00:33:33That's why Adelson testifies he paid her.

00:33:36That night, he says he gave Katie $138,000 from his safe.

00:33:41Over the months that followed, he admits he paid Katie thousands more

00:33:44and asked his mother Donna to put Katie on the payroll at the family dental practice.

00:33:48She said, well, is Katie going to be coming into the office?

00:33:52Is she going to start working for us?

00:33:54And I said, no, she's not.

00:33:56According to Charlie, Donna knew about the alleged extortion,

00:34:00and that's why she signed all those checks made out to Katie.

00:34:03On cross, the prosecutors poke holes in that explanation like a piñata.

00:34:07Do extortionists send a girlfriend of their victim to collect their extortion money?

00:34:16Is that the way it's done, doctor?

00:34:17I'm telling you what happened to me,

00:34:20and I was told that if I didn't pay in 48 hours, I would be killed.

00:34:24Georgia Kappelman asked Charlie if he was so afraid,

00:34:27why did he buy Katie a series of gifts?

00:34:30Did you offer to buy Catherine McBanoa and her mom a cruise?

00:34:34Yes.

00:34:34Did you pay for a meal service for Catherine McBanoa?

00:34:38Yeah, I did.

00:34:39Did you pay for car repairs for her?

00:34:43Yeah.

00:34:43Are these gifts what it took to secure her silence for so long?

00:34:47No, absolutely not.

00:34:49I was never trying to get her silence.

00:34:51I was hoping she'd tell the truth.

00:34:56But listen to what happens when Wendy Adelson herself is asked about Charlie's extortion story.

00:35:02When did you learn that Catherine McBanoa was blackmailing your brother for the murder of your ex-husband?

00:35:09Today.

00:35:10Oh.

00:35:10So he never told you?

00:35:12No.

00:35:14Wendy goes on to testify that despite the state never clearing her,

00:35:17she was not involved in the plot against Dan.

00:35:20Miss Adelson, did you have anything to do with the murder of your ex-husband?

00:35:23Absolutely not.

00:35:24It's fair to say the state has it wrong?

00:35:28Absolutely.

00:35:29But now it's up to the jury.

00:35:31Will they buy Charlie's defense?

00:35:34If this was a murder for hire,

00:35:36why was payment not made before?

00:35:41See, because he had no idea it was going to happen.

00:35:45That's the only thing that makes sense.

00:35:47He didn't do it.

00:35:48He didn't conspire to do it.

00:35:51He didn't solicit.

00:35:53Even his own sister doesn't believe this load he's trying to sell.

00:35:59In her closing arguments,

00:36:01Prosecutor Georgia Kappelman takes the jury back to the motive for the murder.

00:36:05So who did it appear had a motive to want Dan Markell dead?

00:36:10His own family.

00:36:12Wendy appears to be the weakling of the pack.

00:36:15She needs to be saved by Donna and the defendant.

00:36:17The evidence has shown that Dan Markell was a major problem for Wendy.

00:36:22And that meant he was a major problem for Donna,

00:36:25who in turn made Dan Markell a major problem for this defendant.

00:36:33And it's soon apparent the jury has little trouble deciding.

00:36:37After just three hours, they're back with the verdict.

00:36:40When the verdict was read, the tension in the courtroom, you could feel it.

00:36:45We, the jury, find as follows as to count one of the indictment,

00:36:49first-degree murder.

00:36:50The defendant is guilty of first-degree murder.

00:36:54Charlie Adelson is also found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder

00:36:58and solicitation to commit murder.

00:37:00He looked devastated, deflated.

00:37:03Could you just describe the moment for us?

00:37:08Unbelievable.

00:37:11Joy, happiness.

00:37:14So long.

00:37:16In the aftermath of Charlie Adelson's conviction,

00:37:20everyone is wondering, is this the end?

00:37:23And the reaction from the prosecution is simply, stay tuned.

00:37:27Is the investigation still going on?

00:37:29Yes, yes.

00:37:32With four convictions already in the books,

00:37:35it's clear who prosecutors now have squarely in their sights.

00:37:38She's running scared.

00:37:39But can she outrun her own estranged son,

00:37:42coming forward to testify against her?

00:37:44Could you tell us your name, please?

00:37:45Sure.

00:37:46Robert Todd Adelson.

00:37:47A-D-E-L-S-O-N.

00:37:49You can't make it up.

00:38:06The victim has gone down like nothing.

00:38:09That someone thinks they can do this crime and get away with it.

00:38:13I didn't know there was a warrant.

00:38:15Aren't they supposed to inform you?

00:38:17No, we don't alert murderers that there's a warrant out for their arrest,

00:38:21or alleged murderers.

00:38:22Now, an all-new look inside a trial the country couldn't stop watching.

00:38:27Is this grandmother the mastermind behind murder?

00:38:30Never in a million years would I have wanted Danny to be harmed or killed.

00:38:35A key witness who's speaking for the first time.

00:38:38And how did Donna Adelson feel about Dan Markell?

00:38:41I mean, she hated him.

00:38:43You have a son testifying against his own mother.

00:38:48She's just being a parent, not a killer.

00:38:50She's a meddler, not a murderer.

00:38:53Does a typical Jewish grandmother suggest dressing her grandchildren up in Nazi uniforms?

00:38:59Not to my knowledge.

00:39:01I couldn't believe this was happening.

00:39:02If I had become aware of this plan before Danny was murdered, I would have stopped it.

00:39:09Do we need to stay tuned?

00:39:10You couldn't stay tuned.

00:39:11Not one single thing that said anything about wanting Danny Markell killed.

00:39:29Tallahassee has not seen a bigger story than this.

00:39:31The Dan Markell case seems like something out of a television series.

00:39:34Charlie Adelson conspired with Catherine McBanawha to hire hitmen to drive up to Tallahassee to kill Dan Markell.

00:39:44And a jury finds Charlie guilty in just a matter of hours.

00:39:48The defendant is guilty of first-degree murder.

00:39:51The biggest question on everyone's mind after that conviction was,

00:39:55who's next?

00:39:55Is the prosecution going to go after Donna Adelson?

00:40:04In the days after Charlie Adelson's conviction for the murder of Dan Markell,

00:40:23there's a flurry of calls between Charlie and his mom, Donna.

00:40:26They painted a picture without evidence.

00:40:31That's what they did.

00:40:33I was upset.

00:40:34I was in the shot.

00:40:35I just put my head down for a second and then take my head back off.

00:40:38In 24 hours, I went from feeling like I was ready to win the Super Bowl.

00:40:43I was finding out and I got cancer.

00:40:45They blamed the legal system.

00:40:47It wasn't the legal system's fault.

00:40:49The evidence was the evidence.

00:40:52But there's no out of this.

00:40:53I think we can't believe this.

00:40:54If the world's going on around you, you're just trapped.

00:40:59But that's what happens when you commit crimes.

00:41:02People commit the crimes, but they don't want to do the time.

00:41:07Investigators in these recorded calls,

00:41:09they hear one that seems to take an ominous turn.

00:41:13Charlie.

00:41:15Charlie.

00:41:16Can you hear me?

00:41:17Can you hear me?

00:41:18Donna's on the phone with her son, Charlie,

00:41:21and she understands that he has disconnected from the line,

00:41:24but she doesn't fully hang up the phone on her end.

00:41:28She puts the phone down, but it continues to record

00:41:31even as she's having conversations in her house with other people.

00:41:36You can trust what she's saying at that point.

00:41:37It's probably the most truth she's ever going to say.

00:41:40And she does.

00:41:41She spills.

00:41:41It's clear.

00:41:42She's ready to end her life.

00:41:44I can't.

00:41:45I can't push it.

00:41:46I'm not that strong.

00:41:47And I'm more than willing to just say goodbye.

00:41:50We bought our sanitary property a couple months ago.

00:41:53We're good.

00:41:55I'm good.

00:41:55Leave a note.

00:41:56They'll know when to come and care.

00:41:58And we'll do it together.

00:42:00And then, still being recorded,

00:42:02Donna bears her soul,

00:42:04complaining the life she envisioned with her beloved grandchildren

00:42:06isn't all she'd imagined it would be.

00:42:09When they need us to babysit.

00:42:11So we've been really good nannies.

00:42:12And I guess our job is up.

00:42:15Because now the boys are older,

00:42:16so she doesn't need grandma and grandma.

00:42:19Pretty hurtful.

00:42:20I have one son that I don't speak with.

00:42:22I have one son whose husband's dead.

00:42:25I don't get it.

00:42:27I said to Harvey,

00:42:28I swear to God,

00:42:29our family was cursed.

00:42:30It was absolutely cursed.

00:42:32And I don't know how to take care of it anymore.

00:42:35Sounding desperate and alone.

00:42:37Donna, on that same recording,

00:42:38now suggests

00:42:39the best thing to do

00:42:40might be to leave the country.

00:42:42And fast.

00:42:44There's a lot of things that we have to do

00:42:46and we've got a very tight time frame.

00:42:48We've been looking it up over and over.

00:42:51The things change

00:42:51if there is extradition from Vietnam.

00:42:55Because we've looked at all the places.

00:42:57I mean, I could go to Korea and China,

00:42:59but there's no extradition.

00:43:01But we're looking for places where there's no extradition.

00:43:03Before Donna makes her exit,

00:43:05she's heard on that recorded call

00:43:06making plans to share important documents

00:43:09with her daughter, Wendy.

00:43:11We're going to be gone.

00:43:12I want her to have all this information.

00:43:14I have the cemetery property.

00:43:16I want her to see all that.

00:43:18I want her to have all these papers

00:43:20and the wills.

00:43:21I want her to see all this.

00:43:24What investigators learn

00:43:25is that she has this one-way ticket.

00:43:28Donna Adelson, along with her husband Harvey,

00:43:30they arrive at the Miami International Airport

00:43:33planning to take this flight to Vietnam

00:43:36with a stop in Dubai.

00:43:39She had booked the flight one way.

00:43:41They hurriedly went to the judge

00:43:43and had the judge sign the warrant for arrest.

00:43:49With help from the FBI,

00:43:51local police converged

00:43:52on Miami International Airport

00:43:53to make that now infamous arrest.

00:43:56You're on the arrest.

00:43:57You're with the only sign.

00:44:01Final destination is Vietnam.

00:44:03And based on the allegations

00:44:05and the evidence in this case,

00:44:06it appears she was going there

00:44:08specifically because Vietnam

00:44:09is not a country

00:44:10with an extradition treaty

00:44:12with the United States.

00:44:14Somebody fleeing from a crime scene

00:44:16can be interpreted

00:44:17as consciousness of guilt.

00:44:19Where you flee

00:44:20or you do something

00:44:21that evidences your guilt.

00:44:23And the jury instruction is

00:44:24you can infer guilt

00:44:26from that conduct.

00:44:27And it's very damaging.

00:44:28And that ticket

00:44:29was a one-way ticket.

00:44:31Right.

00:44:31One of the fascinating things

00:44:32about murder cases,

00:44:34especially conspiracies,

00:44:35is it usually is

00:44:36their first rodeo.

00:44:38So they will do

00:44:39a series of things

00:44:40that are smart

00:44:40and then everything

00:44:41after that is done.

00:44:42And this case

00:44:43is a perfect example.

00:44:45When did they issue a warrant?

00:44:47Donna talks with the officer

00:44:48about the warrant

00:44:49that was issued for her,

00:44:50both curious

00:44:51and also protesting.

00:44:53I didn't know

00:44:54there was a warrant.

00:44:55How would I know that?

00:44:57Aren't they supposed

00:44:58to inform me

00:44:59that there was a warrant?

00:45:01And of course,

00:45:01the answer to that is no.

00:45:03We don't alert murderers

00:45:05that there's a warrant

00:45:05out for their arrest

00:45:06or alleged murderers.

00:45:07Now, the only trip

00:45:10she's about to take

00:45:11is to the Leon County Jail

00:45:13to pull her opposite

00:45:14of her former

00:45:15luxury high-rise.

00:45:18And now Donna's worried

00:45:19if she'll even

00:45:20make it to trial.

00:45:22Someone came up

00:45:23behind me,

00:45:24pulled my left hand

00:45:26away from the sink,

00:45:27twisted my arm.

00:45:29She's a big woman

00:45:29and I was afraid of her.

00:45:31Handcuffed to a bench,

00:45:43everything is gray and braved

00:45:45because that's the future

00:45:47in custody.

00:45:48The evidence against

00:45:49this woman

00:45:49is extremely powerful.

00:45:52Donna Adelson

00:45:53was booked

00:45:54into the Miami-Dade

00:45:54County Jail tonight

00:45:55on an out-of-county warrant.

00:45:57The arrest comes

00:45:58one week after

00:45:59a jury found

00:46:00Charlie Adelson

00:46:00guilty of orchestrating

00:46:01the fatal shooting

00:46:02of his former

00:46:03brother-in-law,

00:46:04Dan Markell.

00:46:07Good morning.

00:46:08Can you please

00:46:09state your name

00:46:09for the record

00:46:10and make sure

00:46:10you speak in a microphone?

00:46:12Donna Adelson.

00:46:13More than a year

00:46:14passes as Donna

00:46:15waits for trial

00:46:16charged with

00:46:16first-degree murder,

00:46:17conspiracy to commit

00:46:18first-degree murder,

00:46:19and solicitation

00:46:21to commit

00:46:21first-degree murder.

00:46:23At a bond hearing

00:46:24February of 2025,

00:46:26the 74-year-old matriarch,

00:46:28whose residence

00:46:29had been

00:46:29a tony Miami condo,

00:46:32tells a judge

00:46:32the Leon County

00:46:33detention facility

00:46:34is no luxury hotel.

00:46:37Can you describe

00:46:38the conditions

00:46:38inside the annex, please?

00:46:40There are 66 women

00:46:42all in bunk beds,

00:46:44all open.

00:46:46You're kind of

00:46:46one on top of the next.

00:46:48There's no separation

00:46:49at all.

00:46:51And it's not just

00:46:52the grim living conditions.

00:46:53She's also apparently

00:46:54unhappy about

00:46:55what jail food

00:46:56has done to her

00:46:57once-trimmed figure.

00:46:59I've gained

00:47:00more than a third

00:47:01of my body weight here.

00:47:03The diet is all carbs,

00:47:05no protein,

00:47:06and, you know,

00:47:09when you get

00:47:09spaghetti with mashed potatoes,

00:47:12cornbread,

00:47:12and white bread,

00:47:13that's your dinner.

00:47:14Donna also claims

00:47:15she's been the target

00:47:16of intimidation

00:47:17and assault

00:47:18by fellow inmates.

00:47:19I do want to talk

00:47:21to you then

00:47:21about some physical

00:47:23issues that have

00:47:25taken place

00:47:25in the jail.

00:47:26The first one

00:47:27I want to talk about

00:47:28is an incident

00:47:29that took place

00:47:30in the shower.

00:47:31I was washing my hair

00:47:32and all of a sudden

00:47:34someone came up

00:47:35behind me

00:47:36and pulled my left hand

00:47:40away from the sink

00:47:42and twisted my arm.

00:47:46I said,

00:47:47what are you doing?

00:47:48And she's in the same breath

00:47:50that she did that

00:47:51with my arm.

00:47:52She said,

00:47:53you're going to

00:47:53buy me commissary.

00:47:55I said,

00:47:56I'm going to what?

00:47:57And she said,

00:47:58unless you want

00:47:59those pretty white teeth

00:48:01knocked out of your mouth,

00:48:02you're going to

00:48:03buy me commissary.

00:48:05So,

00:48:06I said,

00:48:07okay,

00:48:07okay.

00:48:08And I know

00:48:09that you don't want

00:48:10to talk about

00:48:11who did this to you

00:48:12because why?

00:48:14There's one thing

00:48:14I've learned

00:48:15since I'm there

00:48:16is you don't

00:48:18and the word is snitch.

00:48:19You don't snitch.

00:48:20You don't tell on anyone

00:48:21because you'll be sorry

00:48:22you did.

00:48:24She's a big woman

00:48:25and I was afraid of her.

00:48:29Pleading for release

00:48:30five months before her trial

00:48:31and insisting

00:48:32she's not a flight risk,

00:48:34Donna now offers

00:48:35an explanation

00:48:36for the purchase

00:48:36of those infamous

00:48:37one-way tickets

00:48:38to Vietnam.

00:48:39The husband and I

00:48:41literally

00:48:43shocked

00:48:44and traumatized

00:48:46at what had happened

00:48:47to Charlie

00:48:48and

00:48:51he said,

00:48:52we need to just

00:48:53get some peace.

00:48:54We need to just

00:48:55get some peace.

00:48:55Let's go

00:48:56just get away.

00:48:57We're going to just

00:48:58get away somewhere

00:48:58so we can have

00:48:59some time to think.

00:49:01Not surprisingly,

00:49:03the state

00:49:03is a bit skeptical.

00:49:05Okay,

00:49:05so your testimony

00:49:06is that you weren't

00:49:08trying to go

00:49:09to Vietnam

00:49:10because you wouldn't

00:49:11be able to be

00:49:12extradited from there.

00:49:13It's because,

00:49:15I don't know,

00:49:15maybe we watch

00:49:16too much TV

00:49:17or too many movies

00:49:18but I've seen

00:49:19movies where

00:49:20people are stuck

00:49:22in like

00:49:23third world prisons

00:49:24and waiting

00:49:25and waiting

00:49:26and waiting

00:49:26and my feeling

00:49:29was

00:49:29this is

00:49:31not what

00:49:32would want to happen

00:49:32if we

00:49:33if the states

00:49:35says they want

00:49:35us to come back

00:49:36to buy a ticket

00:49:38we'll come back

00:49:38on our own terms

00:49:39we don't have to be

00:49:40sitting in a jail

00:49:41somewhere

00:49:41we'll come back

00:49:42home and turn

00:49:44ourselves in.

00:49:45But jail is exactly

00:49:47where the judge rules

00:49:48Donna will have to

00:49:48stay until her trial

00:49:49which begins in

00:49:50August of 2025

00:49:51now 11 years

00:49:53after her former

00:49:55son-in-law

00:49:55was gunned down.

00:49:59After multiple delays

00:50:00and attorney changes

00:50:01we are now here

00:50:03at the start

00:50:04of the Donna Adelson

00:50:04trial

00:50:05Adelson has pleaded

00:50:08not guilty

00:50:09to all charges

00:50:10Everyone can be seated

00:50:18Good morning members

00:50:22of the jury

00:50:22Thank you

00:50:25Day one of the trial

00:50:28seeing the amount

00:50:30of media that was there

00:50:31there was sort of

00:50:31this like nervous

00:50:32apprehension of

00:50:33what's going to happen

00:50:34who is the state

00:50:35going to call

00:50:36is there going to be

00:50:36a new piece of evidence

00:50:38we haven't seen

00:50:38or a new witness

00:50:39that we haven't seen

00:50:40Is the state prepared

00:50:41to give its opening

00:50:42statement at this time?

00:50:44Yes sir.

00:50:44You may proceed.

00:50:45You will see

00:50:47you will see that this

00:50:48defendant conspired

00:50:50with her son

00:50:51Charlie Adelson

00:50:52who solicited his girlfriend

00:50:54Catherine McBanois

00:50:56to get this murder done

00:50:57and then this defendant

00:50:59and then this defendant

00:50:59paid her with cash

00:51:00with checks

00:51:01for the job

00:51:02and these acts

00:51:04make her guilty

00:51:05as a principal

00:51:06to first degree murder

00:51:07just as if

00:51:09she was the one

00:51:10pulling the trigger

00:51:10in the garage herself

00:51:12Is the defense

00:51:14prepared to give

00:51:16its opening statement

00:51:17at this time?

00:51:18Yes judge.

00:51:18You may proceed.

00:51:20I want to talk to you

00:51:22now about my client

00:51:23Donna Adelson

00:51:25She is a normal person

00:51:28People who

00:51:29know Donna

00:51:31will tell you

00:51:34that she is not

00:51:35the person that the state

00:51:37is portraying her to be

00:51:38She's kind

00:51:40caring

00:51:42loving

00:51:44She cares more about people

00:51:47than she does about herself

00:51:50The state has a theory

00:51:52and for the past nine years

00:51:54they have told

00:51:55the whole world

00:51:58that Mrs. Adelson

00:51:59was the reason that this happened

00:52:02Without any evidence

00:52:04only motive and theory

00:52:05they put her at the top

00:52:08of this pyramid

00:52:10She's the matriarch

00:52:12She's the matriarch

00:52:13mastermind

00:52:14behind Danny being killed

00:52:16and they don't have

00:52:17evidence of that

00:52:18Over the next two weeks

00:52:21jurors will hear testimony

00:52:22from a parade of witnesses

00:52:24including many of the same ones

00:52:26called to testify

00:52:26in the previous trials

00:52:28They include investigators

00:52:30forensic examiners

00:52:32the convicted hitmen

00:52:33Katie McVanua

00:52:34and even Wendy Adelson

00:52:36But there's also a new witness

00:52:38who may surprise you

00:52:39One we've never heard from

00:52:41in this whole saga

00:52:42Please raise your right hand

00:52:43to the sword

00:52:44Donna's estranged son

00:52:46Rob Adelson

00:52:47Good morning members of the jury

00:52:59Good morning

00:53:00Every day

00:53:01Tallahassee courtroom 3G

00:53:02is packed

00:53:03as the now 75 year old

00:53:05family matriarch

00:53:06Donna Adelson

00:53:06is on trial

00:53:07Everyone can be seated

00:53:08Courtroom 3G

00:53:11was so busy

00:53:13for the entirety

00:53:13of the trial

00:53:14The energy in the courtroom

00:53:16was tense

00:53:17but also there was

00:53:18a kind of nervous

00:53:20excitement about it

00:53:22This murder was set

00:53:23into motion

00:53:23because back in 2014

00:53:25this defendant's family

00:53:27had a big problem

00:53:29and the big problem

00:53:30was Dan Markell

00:53:31Prosecutors lay out

00:53:33their case against Donna

00:53:34Those nasty emails

00:53:36attacking Dan

00:53:36over the custody battle

00:53:37that undercover sting video

00:53:39and those payment checks

00:53:40written out to Katie

00:53:41and signed by Donna

00:53:43But then

00:53:45anticipation in the courtroom

00:53:46ratchets up

00:53:47to a whole new level

00:53:48when the prosecution

00:53:49calls a brand new witness

00:53:51Please raise your right hand

00:53:54to be sworn

00:53:54Donna Adelson's

00:53:56eldest son

00:53:56Rob Adelson

00:53:57walks into the courtroom

00:53:58You have

00:54:02a son

00:54:02testifying

00:54:03against his own mother

00:54:05Rob Adelson

00:54:06is estranged

00:54:07from his family

00:54:08When he wanted to marry

00:54:09someone who wasn't Jewish

00:54:11it was something

00:54:11that they didn't approve

00:54:12and that created friction

00:54:14in the family

00:54:15This is his first time

00:54:16ever testifying

00:54:17We haven't heard

00:54:18from him before

00:54:19Would you describe

00:54:21Donna Adelson's

00:54:22personality

00:54:23as being more

00:54:24controlling

00:54:25or more laid back

00:54:26I think more

00:54:28on the controlling side

00:54:29I think she had

00:54:30certain sort of

00:54:31rigid fixed

00:54:31ideas or impressions

00:54:33for what she wanted

00:54:34for us

00:54:34and if she went along

00:54:36with that

00:54:36things were fine

00:54:37if she didn't

00:54:37things were not fine

00:54:38And Rob testifies

00:54:40that his mother

00:54:40was clearly not fine

00:54:42with her son-in-law

00:54:43Dan Markell

00:54:43after his divorce

00:54:44from Wendy

00:54:45And how did

00:54:47Donna Adelson

00:54:48feel

00:54:49about Dan Markell

00:54:50in 2014?

00:54:53She hated him

00:54:54Rob also testifies

00:54:57that after Dan Markell's

00:54:58murder

00:54:59he got a call

00:55:00from Donna

00:55:00warning him

00:55:01not to talk

00:55:02to law enforcement

00:55:03She called me

00:55:04and said

00:55:04I just want to let you know

00:55:05if the police come around

00:55:06don't talk to them

00:55:09Did you let her know

00:55:10that you already

00:55:11had talked to law enforcement?

00:55:12I said I already did

00:55:13What did she say to that?

00:55:14She said

00:55:14well you don't know

00:55:15anything anyway

00:55:16You don't know

00:55:17anything anyway?

00:55:18Correct

00:55:18Rob Adelson

00:55:20testified that

00:55:21Donna Adelson

00:55:23had a complete

00:55:23lack of curiosity

00:55:24about the person

00:55:26behind the murder

00:55:28of Dan Markell

00:55:28After the murder

00:55:30of Dan Markell

00:55:30did Donna Adelson

00:55:32seem curious

00:55:33about who killed

00:55:34Dan Markell?

00:55:35No

00:55:36Did you actually

00:55:37ever ask her

00:55:38like after the murder

00:55:39like hey

00:55:40what do you think

00:55:40happened?

00:55:41Yeah and

00:55:42I said

00:55:42what do you guys

00:55:43think happened?

00:55:44And she had said

00:55:45I don't know

00:55:46and I don't care

00:55:47it doesn't concern me

00:55:48Rob testifies

00:55:50that seemingly

00:55:51lack of concern

00:55:52about the case

00:55:53continued even

00:55:54after the two hitmen

00:55:55were arrested

00:55:56so I finally

00:55:57broached the top

00:55:58and said

00:55:58they arrested

00:55:59someone who killed

00:55:59Danny

00:56:00you know

00:56:01there's no response

00:56:02and I said it

00:56:03you know

00:56:04at least two

00:56:05or three times

00:56:05that you know

00:56:06they made an arrest

00:56:08they got the guy

00:56:09who killed Danny

00:56:09and then her response

00:56:12was you know

00:56:13I've got to go

00:56:14that was the last

00:56:16time I spoke to her

00:56:17the prosecution

00:56:19then brings forward

00:56:19two more bombshell

00:56:21witnesses

00:56:21two of Donna Adelson's

00:56:23fellow inmates

00:56:24now turned

00:56:25jailhouse snitches

00:56:27you may take your suit

00:56:28according to these inmates

00:56:32Donna promised them

00:56:33in exchange for

00:56:34positive testimony

00:56:35everything from cash

00:56:37veneers

00:56:38health care

00:56:39property

00:56:40even

00:56:41prescription drugs

00:56:42did you ever

00:56:43outright ask her

00:56:45whether she did

00:56:47what she's accused of

00:56:48I did

00:56:49and what did she say

00:56:51to that

00:56:51she said she did

00:56:53it was to keep her

00:56:53grandkids

00:56:54but it wasn't supposed

00:56:55to go that far

00:56:56the reaction in the

00:56:59courtroom was audible

00:57:00there was a gasp

00:57:01there was a

00:57:02an emotional reaction

00:57:03but on cross-examination

00:57:05the defense gets

00:57:06burned to admit

00:57:07that Donna never stated

00:57:08that she actually

00:57:09carried through

00:57:10on her plans

00:57:11having you previously

00:57:12said that

00:57:13Ms. Adelson

00:57:14my client

00:57:14did not plan

00:57:15the murder

00:57:15please call

00:57:19your next witness

00:57:20the other fellow

00:57:24inmate of Donna's

00:57:25who takes the stand

00:57:26is Drina Bernhardt

00:57:27she too says

00:57:29she became close

00:57:29to Donna in jail

00:57:30but went to authorities

00:57:32after she claims

00:57:33Donna asked her

00:57:34to lie on the stand

00:57:35for her

00:57:36one of the key pieces

00:57:38of evidence

00:57:38during Drina Bernhardt's

00:57:39testimony

00:57:39was a notebook

00:57:41that she had

00:57:42while she was

00:57:43incarcerated

00:57:44and inside that

00:57:45was Donna's

00:57:47handwriting

00:57:47with what

00:57:49she wanted

00:57:50Drina to say

00:57:51on the stand

00:57:51almost like a

00:57:52question and answer

00:57:52script

00:57:53is this the script

00:57:55that was prepared

00:57:56for you

00:57:56by Ms. Adelson

00:57:57yes ma'am

00:57:58it is

00:57:58whose handwriting

00:58:01is this

00:58:02on this first page

00:58:03that's Donna's

00:58:05Ms. Anderson

00:58:05okay so she wrote

00:58:07this in your notebook

00:58:09yes ma'am

00:58:09and what is it

00:58:11you were supposed

00:58:11to do

00:58:12with this information

00:58:13I was supposed

00:58:14to study it

00:58:16and

00:58:16answer it

00:58:18correctly

00:58:20on the stand

00:58:21for her

00:58:21Drina testifies

00:58:23that one of those

00:58:24passages

00:58:24was an invented

00:58:25conversation

00:58:26between Donna

00:58:27and Katie

00:58:28about that

00:58:29supposed extortion

00:58:30plot

00:58:31Charlie was scared

00:58:32and easy to extort

00:58:33what a stupid fool

00:58:35he believed her

00:58:37that she was

00:58:38keeping him

00:58:39safe from

00:58:40the killers

00:58:41ha ha

00:58:42what a joke

00:58:43is that the type

00:58:44of language

00:58:45that Catherine

00:58:45McBanelow

00:58:46would use

00:58:47no

00:58:47the defense

00:58:49claims that

00:58:50Drina

00:58:51had a lot

00:58:52to gain

00:58:52by testifying

00:58:53on the state's

00:58:54behalf

00:58:54to try and

00:58:55get a reduced

00:58:55sentence

00:58:56you are facing

00:58:5715 years

00:58:58mandatory

00:58:59day for day

00:59:00sentencing

00:59:01unless you can

00:59:02reach an agreement

00:59:02with the state

00:59:03correct

00:59:04and then you

00:59:05meet Donna Adelson

00:59:06correct

00:59:07you're getting

00:59:07out of jail

00:59:08free card

00:59:08I don't

00:59:10have an answer

00:59:11to that

00:59:11the prosecution

00:59:13rests their case

00:59:14and now

00:59:21it's the defense's

00:59:22turn

00:59:23do they have

00:59:24a trick up

00:59:24their sleeve

00:59:25because it sure

00:59:26looks like

00:59:27Donna's feeling

00:59:27good about her

00:59:28chances

00:59:28it's day 10

00:59:43inside of the

00:59:44courtroom

00:59:44and it's the

00:59:45first time

00:59:46the defense

00:59:46is going

00:59:47to present

00:59:47their case

00:59:48but before

00:59:51even starting

00:59:51without the jury

00:59:52present

00:59:53the defense

00:59:54takes a bold

00:59:55step

00:59:55they asked

00:59:56the judge

00:59:56to dismiss

00:59:57some of the

00:59:58charges

00:59:58the emails

01:00:00text messages

01:00:01the testimony

01:00:02no one has

01:00:04said that my

01:00:05client solicited

01:00:06anybody

01:00:07to commit

01:00:08murder

01:00:08what the defense

01:00:09is claiming

01:00:09is that the

01:00:10prosecution

01:00:11hasn't presented

01:00:12any evidence

01:00:13that Donna

01:00:14was actually

01:00:15involved in

01:00:15this murder

01:00:16plot before

01:00:17it happened

01:00:17venting about

01:00:18how somebody

01:00:19is treating

01:00:19their daughter

01:00:20is not the

01:00:21same as asking

01:00:22somebody to have

01:00:23them killed

01:00:23or ask them

01:00:24the court

01:00:25grant judgment

01:00:26of acquittal

01:00:26counts one

01:00:28and count three

01:00:30judges rarely

01:00:31grant these

01:00:32kinds of motions

01:00:32because they

01:00:33don't want to

01:00:33take the decision

01:00:34away from the

01:00:35jury

01:00:35while there is

01:00:37a lot of

01:00:37circumstantial

01:00:38evidence and

01:00:39inferences in

01:00:40this case

01:00:40there is also

01:00:41direct evidence

01:00:42and in this case

01:00:43after hearing

01:00:44from prosecutors

01:00:45that's just

01:00:46what happened

01:00:46motion for

01:00:47judgment of

01:00:48acquittal will

01:00:48be denied

01:00:49at this time

01:00:50so the jury

01:00:51returns to the

01:00:52courtroom

01:00:52and the defense

01:00:53starts calling

01:00:54witnesses

01:00:55and these

01:00:55are essentially

01:00:56friends of

01:00:57Donna Adelson's

01:00:58who are all

01:00:58talking about

01:00:59her good character

01:01:00and how she's

01:01:01a good person

01:01:02do you describe

01:01:03Donna as a

01:01:04typical jewish

01:01:05grandmother

01:01:05more than

01:01:06typical

01:01:07and a typical

01:01:09jewish mother

01:01:10yes

01:01:11have you ever

01:01:12heard her

01:01:12threaten anyone

01:01:13never have you

01:01:14ever seen her

01:01:15harm anyone

01:01:15never have you

01:01:16ever heard her

01:01:17threatened to

01:01:18have somebody

01:01:18harmed

01:01:19no

01:01:19the defense

01:01:20is trying to

01:01:20make Donna

01:01:21look as

01:01:22sympathetic as

01:01:22they can for

01:01:23the jury

01:01:23but prosecutors

01:01:25can attack that

01:01:25image on cross

01:01:26examination

01:01:27does a typical

01:01:28jewish grandmother

01:01:29suggest dressing

01:01:31her grandchildren

01:01:32up in nazi

01:01:33uniforms

01:01:33not to my

01:01:35knowledge

01:01:36did she talk to

01:01:37you about plans

01:01:38to threaten or

01:01:40to convert the

01:01:41children to

01:01:41christianity in

01:01:42order to strong

01:01:43arm mr.

01:01:44markell

01:01:44she mentioned

01:01:45that she had

01:01:46said that and

01:01:47she said that

01:01:48was so foolish

01:01:49shouldn't they

01:01:50those friends

01:01:51go on to

01:01:51testify about

01:01:52what they say

01:01:52they saw

01:01:53after Donna's

01:01:54son charlie

01:01:55was convicted

01:01:55was she upset

01:01:57yes

01:01:58she cried a lot

01:01:59just incredibly

01:02:02sad

01:02:02she was

01:02:03considering taking

01:02:05her own life

01:02:05because of that

01:02:10the defense is

01:02:10sticking to that

01:02:11story that Donna

01:02:12wanted to go to

01:02:12Vietnam to clear

01:02:14her head

01:02:14a temporary

01:02:15vacation as

01:02:17those friends

01:02:17go on to

01:02:18testify

01:02:18and i suggested

01:02:20since you don't

01:02:21know when you're

01:02:21coming back until

01:02:22sometime in

01:02:23january

01:02:23you know book a

01:02:25one-way

01:02:25said i'd be

01:02:26willing to bet

01:02:26it's cheaper to

01:02:28fly from

01:02:28Vietnam to

01:02:29the united

01:02:29states than

01:02:30it is from

01:02:30the united

01:02:31states to

01:02:31vietnam

01:02:32the one-way

01:02:34ticket was

01:02:35not them

01:02:36fleeing the

01:02:36country because

01:02:37they had to

01:02:37come back for

01:02:38a bar mitzvah

01:02:39that was

01:02:39scheduled

01:02:40they didn't

01:02:40know how

01:02:40long they

01:02:41were going

01:02:41to be gone

01:02:41but they

01:02:42were coming

01:02:43back for

01:02:43the bar mitzvah

01:02:43oh definitely

01:02:44they wouldn't

01:02:45miss it for

01:02:46the world

01:02:46once again

01:02:48prosecutors

01:02:49pointedly

01:02:50challenged the

01:02:50testimony on

01:02:51cross-examination

01:02:52and when she

01:02:53went to

01:02:54vietnam or

01:02:55was trying to

01:02:56go to vietnam

01:02:56to clear her

01:02:57head she was

01:02:58going to clear

01:02:59her head in a

01:03:00non-extradition

01:03:00country can you

01:03:01agree with that

01:03:02i wasn't aware

01:03:04it was non-extradition

01:03:05remember the

01:03:07defense just needs

01:03:07to convince at

01:03:08least one juror

01:03:09that there's

01:03:10reasonable doubt

01:03:10that the story is

01:03:11not what the

01:03:12prosecutors claimed

01:03:13for example

01:03:14that whole

01:03:15divorce custody

01:03:16case that

01:03:17supposedly highly

01:03:18charged fight

01:03:19that prosecutors

01:03:20claim led to

01:03:21the murder

01:03:21the defense calls

01:03:23wendy's divorce

01:03:24lawyer

01:03:24would you

01:03:26call her divorce

01:03:27a bitter custody

01:03:28battle

01:03:29i would not

01:03:31a run-of-the-mill

01:03:32kind of parenting

01:03:34issue kind of

01:03:35case

01:03:35and then a lawyer

01:03:36who was not

01:03:37involved but who

01:03:38the defense hired

01:03:38to review the

01:03:39records of the

01:03:40case

01:03:41was settled

01:03:42amicably and

01:03:44everybody was

01:03:46moving on with

01:03:47their lives

01:03:47and quickly

01:03:48yes

01:03:49did it appear my

01:03:50client accepted

01:03:51that wendy was

01:03:52going to be

01:03:53staying in

01:03:53tallahassee

01:03:54yes

01:03:55that it was

01:03:57done

01:03:57to you it

01:03:59might not seem

01:03:59like a big deal

01:04:00but to the

01:04:01parties it might

01:04:02be the most

01:04:02important thing

01:04:03in the whole

01:04:03wide world

01:04:04there was really

01:04:04heated cross

01:04:05examination by

01:04:06the prosecution

01:04:06really focusing

01:04:07on the fact

01:04:08that it might

01:04:09not be

01:04:10contentious

01:04:11for her

01:04:12who practices

01:04:13law every

01:04:14day but it

01:04:14is contentious

01:04:15for the two

01:04:15people involved

01:04:17in this case

01:04:17when what's at

01:04:18stake is the

01:04:18custody of their

01:04:19children

01:04:19you would not

01:04:21say that divorce

01:04:22and child custody

01:04:23issues are

01:04:24emotionally charged

01:04:25they can be

01:04:26but in this case

01:04:27they weren't

01:04:28they weren't

01:04:29how do you know

01:04:30from the pleadings

01:04:32still as the

01:04:33defense case

01:04:34goes on

01:04:35donna appears

01:04:36in good spirits

01:04:36there's actually

01:04:43body camera

01:04:44footage of an

01:04:44officer escorting

01:04:45donna to court

01:04:46and she's all

01:04:47smiles as she

01:04:48arrives in a

01:04:49wheelchair

01:04:49you got a big

01:04:52day

01:04:53there was a lot

01:04:59of questioning

01:05:00about is donna

01:05:01going to testify

01:05:02are we going to

01:05:03hear from her

01:05:04for the first

01:05:04time and hear

01:05:05in her own

01:05:06words what

01:05:06happened

01:05:07that's going to

01:05:07require some

01:05:08additional

01:05:08conversations

01:05:09but when the

01:05:11lawyers tell the

01:05:11judge donna still

01:05:12hasn't decided if

01:05:13she wants to

01:05:14testify the

01:05:15judge calls a

01:05:15halt to the

01:05:16proceedings he

01:05:17gives the jurors a

01:05:18long lunch break

01:05:18so donna's going

01:05:19to have plenty of

01:05:20time to make up

01:05:21her mind

01:05:22everyone can be

01:05:23suited

01:05:23when court

01:05:24resumes

01:05:25concerning those

01:05:27rights as to

01:05:28whether you will

01:05:28remain silent or

01:05:30whether you will

01:05:30testify have you

01:05:32made a decision

01:05:33concerning this

01:05:34matter

01:05:34it happens i'm

01:05:36not prepared to

01:05:37make that decision

01:05:37this decision affects

01:05:39the rest of my

01:05:40life

01:05:40i couldn't believe

01:05:42this was happening

01:05:42i can't believe that

01:05:44we're here and we're

01:05:45still waiting for her

01:05:46to make a decision

01:05:46mrs edelson you're in

01:05:48the same position as

01:05:49every other criminal

01:05:50defendant who faces

01:05:52trial ultimately you

01:05:53must decide whether

01:05:54you will testify or

01:05:56whether you will not

01:05:57i will give you

01:05:58exactly five additional

01:05:59minutes

01:06:00ms fulford

01:06:18ms edelson the extra

01:06:20time that you've been

01:06:21provided that has come

01:06:23to a conclusion

01:06:23those five minutes the

01:06:25judge gave donna to

01:06:25decide if she's going

01:06:26to testify are now

01:06:27over her answer may be

01:06:29the most hotly

01:06:30anticipated moment of

01:06:32the whole trial

01:06:33as it relates to your

01:06:35right to remain silent

01:06:36and your right to testify

01:06:38what is your decision

01:06:40concerning these two

01:06:41rights

01:06:42i just remember that it

01:06:43being seconds of

01:06:45silence complete and utter

01:06:48silence and you're seeing

01:06:49people craning to see what

01:06:51she's doing what she's

01:06:52seeing what she's thinking

01:06:53what is she going to say

01:06:55then finally donna answers

01:06:58softly

01:06:59this time i don't want

01:07:01you to ask

01:07:01donna is not going to

01:07:04tell her side not going to

01:07:06subject herself to cross

01:07:07examination and with that

01:07:09the defense rests the state

01:07:11calls no rebuttal witnesses

01:07:13and so the next day it's on

01:07:16to the closing arguments

01:07:17this is dan markell he's the

01:07:21victim in this case

01:07:22a son a brother a colleague

01:07:26but most of all a father

01:07:29the prosecutor georgia

01:07:30kappelman she begins her

01:07:32closing argument where she's

01:07:34telling this jury that dan

01:07:36markell he's the victim here

01:07:37he's the center and that he

01:07:39was someone who was trying to

01:07:41fight for custody of his kids

01:07:43but the more that he fought

01:07:45the more that donna adelson

01:07:47got angry

01:07:48she wasn't going to get what

01:07:49she wanted through the legal

01:07:50system but that wasn't the only

01:07:52way to skin a cat was it the

01:07:54ends justify the means for her

01:07:57people

01:07:58kappelman says those ends

01:08:00relocating her grandkids away

01:08:02from tallahassee led to donna's

01:08:04plan she used charlie to get dan

01:08:07killed

01:08:08what was the cost of that to not only dan

01:08:13markell but to those little boys those

01:08:16boys who lost their father it wasn't

01:08:19better for them to be in south florida it was better for them to have their father this defendant decided they didn't need their dad she doesn't get to decide that may you have the strength and the common sense to see this evidence for what it is it's only one thing only one truth find her

01:08:37that was that was a highly emotional moment and i think for them it was a chance to say this is what you're doing it for this is who we're seeking justice for it is for these two little boys that lost their father but then the defense came in and said something equally as powerful

01:08:53we sat here for days listening to testimony of witness after witness getting on the stand

01:08:58not a single one of them connected my client to danny markell's murder not one

01:09:04jackie fulford tells the jury not to get sidetracked by all that emotion

01:09:09she says they must focus only on the evidence of what donna did leading up to the murder

01:09:15not a single email no no phone calls that are recorded no written documents no emails not one single thing that said anything about wanting danny markell killed

01:09:29she admits donna called dan markell a lot of bad names

01:09:32and that she may have been overly involved in her kids lives but she's just being a parent not a killer

01:09:38she's a meddler not a murderer they haven't proven that to you you have to find her not guilty

01:09:45because they have failed to do their job prior to that closing argument i would say that the general

01:09:51consensus was that she's guilty i think for the first time after the defense's closing arguments there was

01:09:58an element of maybe they will find her innocent the defense team looked rather confident with their

01:10:04client like they had given it their all they had put on a great defense and that hopefully they had

01:10:10given the jury something to think about that equaled reasonable doubt and in fact trial watchers saw some

01:10:16legal analysts predicting a possible win for donna i don't believe the case was proven against donna

01:10:22edelson i believe it's very it's far from being proven i think she's she should be acquitted

01:10:28completely and then only about three hours after the jury left we have a verdict and the matriarch

01:10:33mastermind murder trial it's about the same amount of time the jury took in charlie's trial

01:10:38we really weren't sure what this jury was coming back with after three hours there was a sentiment

01:10:45that it was possible it could go either way the judge comes in please bring in the jurors

01:10:50it was so tense in that room i've never felt tension like that the jury comes in

01:10:58has the jury reached a unanimous verdict yeah the bailiff hands the verdict to the judge

01:11:07no one was moving i don't think anyone was breathing honestly that it was that tense

01:11:11the defendant is guilty of first degree murder mrs adelson control yourself when the verdict was read

01:11:21out uh donna adelson let out a very audible gasp a lot of like no no no moving around

01:11:28while this was not the outcome i'm sure that you desired there will not be any further outbursts in

01:11:35front of the jury it was so emotional that judge everett had to ask the jury to be removed from the

01:11:40courtroom members of the jury the bailiff will escort you to the jury room

01:11:44so he could remind donna radelson to control her emotions do you need a moment to collect yourself

01:11:52please give her tissues if she needs them

01:11:56there's part of me that thinks it was an act that she wasn't just going to sit calmly

01:12:02she was going to give the reaction that perhaps the public expects from someone when they are innocent

01:12:08and found guilty dan markel's parents sit stoically a few feet away how many times must they have

01:12:15wanted to speak their mind to donna in just a few minutes they will finally get their chance

01:12:20and donna speaks and says something the jury never heard and one of them is now speaking to 2020

01:12:29my name is evan higginbotham that was juror number six and donna adelson's trial

01:12:33the defendant is guilty of first degree murder

01:12:51the prosecution had a long list of evidence and i think it was how they presented that evidence in the

01:12:59trial that laid out everything to finally land me at a guilty verdict at the end of it

01:13:05we the jury find as follows the defendant is guilty of first degree murder

01:13:11mrs adelson control yourself

01:13:15i expected it to be difficult to be in the same room as her when she was told that she would likely

01:13:20be spending the rest of her life in prison but it was definitely challenging to see her

01:13:26come to terms with that after the verdict comes down dan markel's parents are allowed to address

01:13:34the court our lives will never return to normal for those who love danny and for those who danny loved

01:13:43there is no escape from the wicked effects of what don adelson said in motion carried out

01:13:50and paid for and for many years enjoyed the aftermath off

01:13:54donna's selfishness cruelty and complete disrespect for human life along with that of her co-conspirators

01:14:06have left families forever broken i wish that every day of her remaining days

01:14:14she thinks about the harm she has caused to so many especially those two boys she claims to have

01:14:23loved so much and my only short question to donna was it worth it

01:14:29when donna's being transported to the facility from the courthouse she's visibly emotional

01:14:38after the trial prosecutor georgia kappelman reflects on the case and its littlest victims

01:14:51dan and wendy's sons

01:14:52yeah there's no justice for them and i haven't done them any favors today and i want to sleep over that

01:14:58fact the family's just been totally destroyed and i hate that sometimes it feels a little bit like

01:15:04being a part of it you know and so i wish them nothing but the best reporters immediately want

01:15:11to know if there will be more prosecutions in the case do we need to stay tuned you can stay tuned

01:15:16the last time georgia kappelman says stay tuned is after charlie was convicted

01:15:22and donna's arrested days later

01:15:24at sentencing we heard from harvey for the first time

01:15:50on the record donna has always been a loving and caring wife and is innocent of the charges

01:15:57a biased judge and jury were influenced by years of one-sided news pieces

01:16:08donna adelson wanted to share some comments at her own sentencing if i had become aware of this plan

01:16:14before danny was murdered i would have stopped it the minute donna adelson starts speaking she's

01:16:21immediately emotional with not one iota of actual evidence the state convinced the tallahassee jury

01:16:29that i solicited and conspired with other people to have danny killed where is the evidence prior to the

01:16:39murder the judge reminds her that this is her opportunity to show remorse to tell him why

01:16:57he should sentence her to less but it seems that donna isn't really interested in that

01:17:01never in a million years would i have wanted danny to be harmed or killed nor could i ever do something

01:17:11that would leave these two small boys to grow up without him you certainly can choose to deny your

01:17:18involvement and maintain innocence the court finds the evidence in this case is clear he will be

01:17:25sentenced accordingly this afternoon miss adelson please rise despite her pleas of innocence donna

01:17:34adelson is sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of dan markel with an additional

01:17:4030 years for the solicitation and conspiracy charges this is dan as for dan markel's family their lives

01:17:53remain forever changed i was danny's older sister nothing can ever be the same again danny is gone and

01:18:03that's number one but number two we don't have the connection to his family to his boys so for my

01:18:11parents they have a gaping hole because their son was murdered but they also lost their grandchildren

01:18:20it's very difficult these boys are missing out on a set of grandparents that have all this warmth and

01:18:30desire to spoil them and be grandparents to them this is a great picture of the two of us

01:18:38i try very hard to push all this to the back of my mind but needless to say every single day in one

01:18:46way or another it gets pushed back from the back to the front dan's mother says she remembers her son

01:18:54for what she considers his most meaningful achievement danny was a great father one of the things with

01:19:00all his accomplishments to me i'm the proudest of him as a father

01:19:05we should point out tonight that charlie adelson has appealed his murder conviction and his mother

01:19:17donna says she plans to as well it has now been 10 years since dan markel's murder his children are

01:19:24actually teenagers now that's our program for tonight thanks for watching i'm deborah roberts and

01:19:29i'm david muir from all of us at 2020 and abc news good night

01:19:59and abc news good night

01:20:07i'm

01:20:08we'll see you next time

01:20:09the next time

01:20:10i start the next time

01:20:11we have a new clip

01:20:11and let's see you have a new clip

01:20:13i have a new clip

01:20:15i have a new clip

01:20:17i have a new clip

01:20:18and we have a new clip

01:20:20we have to show you

01:20:22the clip

01:20:23and we are back

01:20:23and we're happy

20/20 - Season 2026 Episode 1 - Meddler or Murderer?

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