The murder case of Florida State University law professor, Dan Markel, appeared to be settled with the conviction of Charlie Adelson. However, this now seems to be far from over. The mother-in-law of the victim, Donna Adelson, was arrested in the Miami airport this week after her son’s conviction, with reports indicating she was attempting to flee to Vietnam.
In 2014, Markel sat in his car after dropping his children at school. Moments later, he was shot twice in the head, and he succumbed to his injuries less than a day later. At the time of his death, Markel was disputing custody of his children with his ex-wife, Wendi Adelson, an attorney in Florida.
The custody dispute was triggered by Markel wanting his children to be closer to him in Tallahassee, instead of being relocated to Miami, where his mother-in-law lived. Markel is on the record saying he wanted his children far away from Donna Adelson, given her history of verbal abuse.
The tension between Markel and his former in-laws was evident. Wendi Adelson herself admitted that her brother, Charlie Adelson, had made casual comments about hiring a “hitman.”
Now that Charlie Adelson has been adjudicated guilty for first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and solicitation to commit first-degree murder, the case may run deeper than some believed. Donna Adelson is now facing charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and solicitation to commit first-degree murder. All members of the Adelson family continue to deny involvement, despite the four people who have now been convicted for the murder of Markel.
The State Attorney’s Office and law enforcement have implied that the investigation is ongoing, so more members of the Adelson family could still be prosecuted for the murder of Markel.
ABC News reported that Donna Adelson was “on the jetway and was getting ready to board” when police arrested her. Mrs. Adelson had a one-way ticket to Vietnam, a country without extradition to the United States. This means that if Adelson had made it to Vietnam, the Vietnamese government would not comply in sending her, or any accused criminal, back to the United States.
Although Donna Adelson’s involvement in the murder of Dan Markel is unclear, this case is certainly not over. Adelson has since been transported from Miami to Tallahassee and remains in police custody.
