'Black Swan Murderer' sobs as neighbor's chilling 911 call is played in court after she shot husband who she married after just 13 days

The alleged 'Black Swan murderer' was seen sobbing successful tribunal connected Tuesday arsenic she listened to nan 911 telephone a neighbour made successful nan minutes aft she killed her estranged husband. 

Ashley Benefield, now 32, ran to her neighbor's location successful Bradenton, Florida connected September 27, 2020 aft she shot and killed Douglas Benefield, 59, whom she had joined successful 2016 aft making love for conscionable 13 days.

'I heard a very large pounding connected my door,' neighbour Josh Sant testified connected Tuesday, arsenic Ashley faces execution charges for nan veteran's death, according to Fox 13. 'It benignant of startled me.' 

He said he opened nan doorway to find Ashley, who told him that her hubby attacked her and she changeable him.

Sant past called 911, telling officers, 'She conscionable came over, her estranged hubby attacked her and she said she changeable him,' according to an audio signaling played successful tribunal connected Tuesday.

Throughout nan telephone call, jurors were capable to perceive Sant trying to calm Benefield down, WFLA reports.

As nan audio was played successful court, Ashley - a erstwhile ballerina - was seen crying.    

She is now claiming that she was simply acting successful self-defense, arsenic her attorneys overgarment Doug - nan begetter of her girl - arsenic a home abuser. 

The brace met astatine Ben Carson's location successful Palm Beach, Florida successful August 2016. She had been campaigning for then-Republican statesmanlike nominee Donald Trump. 

They were joined conscionable 13 days later. 

In nan early days of their relationship, 'They were conscionable pinch each different each nan time,' Doug's girl 23-year-old girl from a erstwhile marriage, Eva, testified.

'They were lovey dovey, PDA each nan time. They ne'er near each other's side,' she said.

Within conscionable 1 twelvemonth of marriage, Doug, a retired Naval formation officer, helped Ashley execute her dream of starting a ballet company, utilizing his ain money and contacts.

He acted arsenic nan CEO of nan company, while Ashley took connected nan domiciled arsenic executive director.

But, soon aft nan company’s founding, it was sued by dancers and choreographers who alleged their contracts were breached erstwhile they were fired conscionable weeks aft their hiring.

Doug besides reversed his vasectomy, and Ashley became pregnant 3 months later.

That is erstwhile everything changed, Assistant State Attorney Suzanne O'Donnell claims.

She said Ashley moved from their location successful South Carolina to Brandenton to unrecorded pinch her mother arsenic she started to acquisition greeting sickness, and from that constituent on, she ne'er lived pinch Doug again. 

'They continued a long-distance narration erstwhile she first moved to Florida and continued trying to support together and communication, but astir nan aforesaid clip arsenic nan ballet [company] collapses, Ashley Benefield starts complaining against nan victim,' O'Donnell told jurors.

She began accusing Doug of poisoning her and of non-physical home violence. 

But detectives from nan Manatee County Sheriff's Office conducted a five-week investigation and were incapable to find immoderate grounds to support her claims of abuse.

Prosecutors now reason that sidesplitting Doug was a last-ditch effort to summation custody of their daughter, who was 2 years aged astatine nan clip of nan shooting.

'This is simply a lawsuit astir a female who, early connected successful her pregnancy, decided she wanted to beryllium a azygous mother,' O'Donnell argued. 'She did not want nan begetter of this kid to person immoderate visitation. 

'This is simply a agelong story, this was a custody conflict this mother would triumph astatine each costs, and nan costs was nan life of Doug Benefield.' 

The prosecutors reason Doug was doing everything successful his powerfulness to rectify their matrimony and support their family together. 

On nan time of Douglas' death, Ashley was preparing to move her and her young girl to Maryland to unrecorded pinch her mother.

Doug was besides readying to move to nan Old Line State, but would unrecorded separately from his woman and daughter.

He had arrived astatine Ashley's Bradenton location to thief them battalion erstwhile he was changeable 4 times successful Ashley's bedroom.

In a previously-filed mobility obtained by Law & Crime, defense attorneys reason Doug arrived 'happy, hyper  and animated,' but yet became 'agitated, sullen and intimidating.'

After verbally insulting his wife, nan defense claims, Doug rammed her pinch a moving box, leaving abrasions.

'Doug Benefield knew afloat good connected that time that this narration was over,' Ashley's attorney, Neil Taylor, based on successful court.

He went connected to declare that Doug was manipulative and 'viewed Ashley Benefield arsenic his property.'

'Thirty years older than Ashley, he was obsessed pinch her, and he successfully portrayed himself arsenic he was not successful an effort to triumph her manus successful marriage,' Taylor said of their relationship.

'Despite promoting himself arsenic a religious, honorable and decent quality being, Benefield was a manipulative, cunning and abusive man who insisted, perfectly insisted connected control.'

Taylor past told nan assemblage that Doug erstwhile fired a handgun into a room ceiling successful an effort to get Ashley to extremity talking, threw a loaded weapon astatine her, punched their canine successful nan look - knocking it unconscious, and regularly carried a concealed firearm that was 'ready to fire.'

He besides claimed that aft Ashley and Doug were separated, he illegally tracked her, often pursuing without her consent and moreover driving from retired of authorities to support tabs connected her.

At slightest once, Doug allegedly stood successful a neighbor's backyard successful nan mediate of nan nighttime to get a glimpse of her. 

Taylor besides took statement of Doug's 'previous marital history of home violence,' Law & Crime reports.

He said that anterior incidents would beryllium supported by rule enforcement.

The defense is moreover apparently readying to telephone O'Donnell arsenic a witnesser because she declined to property charges against Doug aft Ashley's earlier claims of abuse, Court TV reports.

'Ashley Benefield feared him,' Taylor claimed of nan deceased.

'She near him a missive erstwhile she moved retired 3 years anterior to nan homicide detailing really frightened she was of him because of each these acts. She feared for herself and for her unborn child.'

The defense has moreover revenge documents indicating they will beryllium presenting grounds that Ashley suffers from 'battered spouse syndrome.'

He added: 'The only point that is going to person been established present beyond a reasonable uncertainty is that Douglas Benefield was a convulsive abuser, Ashley Benefield's efforts to placate him was perfectly accordant pinch what abused female do, particularly erstwhile a kid is involved, and that Ashley's consequence and assets to deadly unit was justified nether nan circumstances.'

Outside of nan Florida courthouse connected Monday, protesters showed their support for nan erstwhile ballerina.

'We really are opinionated for Ashley,' her pastor, Mike Brown, told Fox 13.

'We person a group of home unit survivors who are opinionated pinch us, fresh to spot justness prevail.'

But earlier jurors took their seats connected Monday, nan defense tried to hold Ashley's proceedings by 60 days, arguing that caller rulings by nan tribunal had severely impaired their expertise to coming an effective defense.

Judge Matt Whyte denied nan motion, saying nan ineligible squad has much than capable clip to hole successful nan 3 and a half years since Ashley was charged.

The squad had besides antecedently sought to get nan second-degree execution charges against Ashley dropped.

But Whyte refused to disregard nan charges astatine a proceeding past year.

In his ruling, Whyte wrote that nan grounds 'proves intelligibly and convincingly that nan suspect is not entitled to court-ordered immunity from criminal prosecution, arsenic she was not justified successful utilizing deadly unit against nan victim.'

Ashley now faces a minimum condemnation of 25 years down bars and a maximum condemnation of life successful situation if she is recovered blameworthy of Doug's execution pursuing nan two-week-long trial.