# Donna Sue Adelson

> A Leon County jury convicted Adelson in 2025 of first-degree murder, conspiracy and solicitation in the July 2014 murder-for-hire killing of Florida State University law professor Dan Markel, her former son-in-law. She is serving life in prison, maintains she is innocent and has appealed.

- Case: State of Florida v. Adelson · Tallahassee, Florida · 2023
- Case status: Convicted. Convicted Sept. 4, 2025, of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and solicitation to commit first-degree murder. Sentenced Oct. 13, 2025, to life in prison without parole on the murder count and an additional 30 years, to run consecutively, on the other counts. Her appeal to Florida's First District Court of Appeal (No. 1D2025-2848) is pending; her initial brief was due Aug. 14, 2026, and her lawyers asked for more time on Aug. 7, 2026, citing a medical emergency. The sources reviewed report no ruling on the appeal as of Oct. 29, 2026.
- Last updated: 2026-10-29
- Editorial review: approved 2026-10-29
- Web page: https://criminalbackstories.com/cases/donna-adelson/
- All defendants are presumed innocent until found guilty by a court of law. Charges and allegations described on this site are not proof of guilt.

## Why she's in the news

Adelson's appeal is pending before Florida's First District Court of Appeal.[1] On Aug. 7, 2026, a week before her initial brief was due, her lawyers asked the court for a 14-day extension, saying a medical emergency had kept them from reviewing the brief with her.[2][3] The same court affirmed the conviction and life sentence of her son, Charlie Adelson, on July 1, 2026, rejecting his arguments about pretrial publicity and the jury pool.[1] *The sources reviewed do not report whether her brief has since been filed.*

## Case at a glance

- Convictions: First-degree murder; conspiracy to commit first-degree murder; solicitation to commit first-degree murder[11][1]
- Victim: Daniel "Dan" Markel, 41, a Florida State University law professor[24][1]
- Date and place: July 18, 2014, at his home in Tallahassee, Florida[22][1]
- Arrested: Nov. 13, 2023, at Miami International Airport, a week after her son Charlie's conviction[24][23]
- Indicted: Nov. 15, 2023, by a Leon County grand jury, on the same three charges[22]
- Verdict: Guilty on all counts, Sept. 4, 2025, after about three hours of deliberation[11][12]
- Sentence: Oct. 13, 2025: life without parole on the murder count, plus 30 years, consecutive, on the conspiracy and solicitation counts[7][1]
- Court: Leon County Circuit Court; Circuit Judge Stephen Everett[7][17]
- Appeal: Notice of appeal filed Nov. 4, 2025; *Adelson v. State*, No. 1D2025-2848 (Fla. 1st DCA), pending[6][2][1]
- Others convicted: Sigfredo Garcia, Luis Rivera, Katherine Magbanua and her son Charlie Adelson[1][6]

## The backstory

### The custody dispute

Dan Markel and Adelson's daughter married in 2006 and both later took jobs at Florida State University's law school in Tallahassee, ABC News reported.[4] According to the First District Court of Appeal's statement of facts in her son Charlie's appeal, the couple divorced and were in a dispute over the daughter's petition to move with their two sons to South Florida, where her family lived; Markel opposed the move.[1] The court wrote that Adelson, her husband and her son Charlie all wanted the move, and that Adelson suggested her daughter offer Markel $1 million to agree to it.[1] The court denied the relocation request.[24][15] In 2014, Markel filed a motion to stop Adelson from having unsupervised visits with the children, the last motion he filed before his death, according to ABC News.[4]

### The killing

On July 18, 2014, Markel was shot twice in the head while sitting in his car in the garage of his Tallahassee home, the appeals court wrote.[1][22] He was 41 and died the next day.[24][4] A Tallahassee police sergeant testified at Adelson's trial that Markel's last outgoing message was at 10:34 a.m. and that he was shot within minutes of it.[19] Surveillance video showed a rental car following Markel that morning; Luis Rivera and Sigfredo Garcia had rented it, according to the opinion.[1]

### The chain of people

The appeals court's statement of facts describes how investigators connected Garcia to the Adelsons through Katherine Magbanua, Charlie Adelson's former girlfriend, who was involved with Garcia.[1] Rivera, a member of the Latin Kings, told investigators that Magbanua hired Garcia, who recruited him, and that the three were paid $100,000 in $100 bills, the court wrote.[1] Two months after the killing, Magbanua began receiving a salary from the Adelsons' dental practice, though the court found no evidence she worked there.[1]

Rivera pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and is serving 19 years.[1][6] Garcia was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy and sentenced to life; Magbanua was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy and solicitation and sentenced to life.[1][4] Their convictions were affirmed on appeal.[1] After her conviction, Magbanua said Charlie Adelson gave her the money and the information needed to find Markel, according to the opinion.[1] Charlie Adelson was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy and solicitation on Nov. 6, 2023, and sentenced to life plus two consecutive 30-year terms; the appeals court affirmed on July 1, 2026.[23][1]

### The 2016 "bump"

In 2016, an undercover FBI agent posing as an extortionist approached Adelson and demanded $5,000, the Associated Press reported.[24] FBI Special Agent Pat Sanford testified at her trial that the agent, posing as a gang member, handed her a newspaper article, and he walked jurors through dozens of calls recorded in April and May 2016.[17] According to the ABA Journal's account of the trial, the article about Markel had $5,000 and a phone number written on it, and Adelson then told her son she had received "some paperwork" and that they needed to meet; asked who it involved, she said, "Well, probably both of us."[12] The arrest affidavit says she told her son, "This TV is probably about five," the *Tallahassee Democrat* reported.[21]

In a later recorded meeting, she told her son, "As long as you tell me that this is being taken care of, I'm fine," and he told her, "You didn't do anything to anybody," according to the calls played in court.[18] When she eventually called the undercover agent herself, she said, "It's not me. It's not me," and "I know I didn't do anything."[17] Sanford testified that the Adelsons came to believe law enforcement was behind the approach.[17]

### Arrest and charges

Charlie Adelson was convicted on Nov. 6, 2023.[23] On Nov. 13, 2023, the FBI arrested Adelson at Miami International Airport as she and her husband were about to board one-way flights to Vietnam by way of Dubai, the Associated Press and WCTV reported.[24][23] The arrest affidavit says she discussed "plans for a suicide, but also discusses plans to flee to a non-extradition country," WCTV reported.[23] State Attorney Jack Campbell said the arrest "was not just based on the flight," but that the flight "played a part in the timing."[24] On Nov. 15, 2023, a grand jury indicted her for first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and solicitation to commit first-degree murder.[22] She pleaded not guilty.[21]

### The trial

Her trial opened in August 2025 in Leon County before Circuit Judge Stephen Everett.[19][17] The State called 26 witnesses over six days.[16]

**Phone records.** Sgt. Christopher Corbitt of the Tallahassee Police Department testified about the timing of calls among the people involved.[19] He testified that after the hired men rented cars for trips to Tallahassee in June and July 2014, Magbanua called Charlie Adelson, who then called his parents' home, and that investigators believe he was speaking with his mother.[19] Prosecutors said a March 2014 text in which Adelson told her son "I know you'll come through" about a "birthday present" was code for the killing.[19] Corbitt testified that on the night of the killing, Adelson's phone traveled from South Florida to the area of her son's house and that she texted him, "Outside your house."[19]

**Magbanua.** Testifying for the State, Magbanua said Charlie Adelson often stepped out to speak with his mother while arranging the plot, and agreed when the prosecutor asked whether he was "the go-between between you and Donna."[20] She testified that when she went to his house the night of the killing to collect the money, he told her his parents had just left, and that he later told her his mother "washed the money."[20] She said she asked for part of her payment as checks from the dental practice.[20] On cross-examination, Fulford pointed out that Magbanua had met Adelson only once and that her account had changed after her own conviction.[20] Rivera also testified for the State.[15]

**Family and jail witnesses.** Two of Adelson's children testified for the prosecution.[15] Two women who had been held with her at the Leon County Jail testified; one said Adelson admitted to the crime, and the other said Adelson wrote out a script of testimony for her, which a state handwriting examiner attributed to Adelson.[15] Both testified that she offered gifts in exchange for testimony that her son was the victim of extortion, the ABA Journal reported.[12]

**After the conviction of her son.** Corbitt testified that after Charlie's conviction, she wrote to a visa service, "I'm trying to get a fast track emergency visa for Vietnam."[16] Jurors heard a recorded call in which she can be heard saying "if there is extradition from Vietnam."[15]

**The defense.** The State did not call Charlie Adelson.[16] The defense called witnesses including a woman who said Adelson was "quite hysterical" the day Markel was killed and a former divorce lawyer who described the divorce as "routine" and "amicable."[12] Adelson chose not to testify, after the judge twice gave her time to decide.[12][11]

### Verdict and sentence

The jury began deliberating at 4:18 p.m. on Sept. 4, 2025, and returned guilty verdicts on all three counts that evening, after about three hours.[14][11] Adelson had waived the jury's consideration of lesser included offenses, the ABA Journal reported.[12] Judge Everett denied her motion for a new trial on Sept. 25, 2025.[8]

On Oct. 13, 2025, he sentenced her to life in prison without the possibility of parole on the murder count, and to 30 more years on the conspiracy and solicitation counts, to run consecutively.[7][1] "The court finds the evidence in this case is clear," he said.[7] Life was the mandatory sentence for the murder conviction.[10]

### The appeal

Her lawyers filed a notice of appeal on Nov. 4, 2025.[6] On Aug. 7, 2026, they asked the First District Court of Appeal for a 14-day extension of the Aug. 14 deadline for her initial brief, saying a medical emergency had prevented them from reviewing it with her.[2] Court TV reported that prosecutors had not responded and the court had not ruled when it reported the request.[3] *The sources reviewed report no later developments in her appeal through Oct. 29, 2026.*

## Personal backstory

### Family

Adelson is married to a retired dentist who founded the Adelson Institute for Aesthetics and Implant Dentistry in Tamarac, Florida, and they have three children, the *Tallahassee Democrat* reported.[21] Her son Charlie, a periodontist, worked at the family practice; the Associated Press reported that the family made its fortune in dentistry.[21][24] Prosecutors said payroll checks to Magbanua from the practice, totaling more than $17,000 from September 2014 to at least April 2016, were handwritten and signed by Adelson.[21]

At trial her eldest son, who is estranged from her, testified about what WTXL described as her controlling nature and strict expectations of her children; the defense argued his estrangement left him without a full picture of family events.[15] A prosecutor described her as heavily involved in her daughter's career, relationships and home purchases, ABC News reported.[4] Her own lawyers called her an overinvolved mother.[14]

*No mental-health testimony or court findings about her appear in the sources reviewed.*

### The victim's family

After the verdict, Markel's parents gave victim impact statements and asked for the maximum sentence.[11] "She is the curse," his mother said.[11] After Adelson's arrest, the family said, "The compass has moved in the right direction to get some justice for our family."[23]

### In custody

She was 73 at her arrest and 75 when she was sentenced.[24][7] She is serving her sentence in a Florida state prison, according to Court TV.[3] She maintains her innocence.[7][3]

## Where the parties stand

- Prosecution: Prosecutors argued that Adelson and her son Charlie arranged the killing because Markel stood in the way of her daughter moving with her two young sons to South Florida.[7][13] "All their lives depended on the success of this relocation effort," Chief Assistant State Attorney Georgia Cappleman told jurors in closing.[13] She pointed to payroll checks Adelson signed to Katherine Magbanua after the killing: "If she wasn't involved, there is no reason in the world she would write these checks."[13]
- Defense: Her lawyers, Jackie Fulford and Joshua Zelman, argued that no witness tied her to the plot before Markel was killed and that she wrote the checks on her son's instructions after he told her he was being extorted.[14][12] "She's a meddler, not a murderer," Fulford told jurors.[14] They attacked Magbanua's credibility and urged jurors to consider whether others in the family were responsible; her daughter has denied involvement and has not been charged.[14][7] In seeking a new trial, they argued the verdict rested on "speculation, impermissible stacking of inferences, and theory."[9]
- Adelson: Adelson did not testify.[11] At sentencing she said, "I am an innocent woman convicted of this terrible crime without evidence," and called the trial a miscarriage of justice, the Associated Press reported.[7] "Never in a million years would I have wanted Danny to be harmed or killed," she said.[4]
- The court: Denying a new trial, Judge Everett wrote that "the greater amount of credible evidence supports the convictions" and that the record showed "overt actions by the defendant in furtherance of the murder-for-hire scheme."[8] At sentencing he cited her "utter lack of remorse."[7]

## Timeline

- 2006: Dan Markel marries Adelson's daughter; both later teach at Florida State University's law school.[4]
- July 18, 2014: Markel is shot twice in the head in his car in the garage of his Tallahassee home; he dies the next day.[1][4]
- 2016: Sigfredo Garcia and Luis Rivera are arrested; Rivera later pleads guilty to second-degree murder.[4][1]
- April 2016: An undercover FBI agent approaches Adelson in South Florida with a demand for money, an operation described at her trial as a "bump."[17][18][24]
- 2019: A jury convicts Garcia of first-degree murder and conspiracy; he is sentenced to life.[4][1]
- 2022: Katherine Magbanua is convicted at a retrial and sentenced to life; Charlie Adelson is arrested.[4][20]
- Nov. 6, 2023: A jury convicts Charlie Adelson of murder, conspiracy and solicitation.[23]
- Nov. 13, 2023: Adelson is arrested at Miami International Airport before a flight to Vietnam by way of Dubai.[24][23]
- Nov. 15, 2023: A grand jury indicts her on the same three charges.[22]
- Sept. 4, 2025: The jury finds her guilty on all counts.[11]
- Sept. 25, 2025: Judge Everett denies her motion for a new trial.[8]
- Oct. 13, 2025: She is sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years.[7]
- Nov. 4, 2025: Her lawyers file a notice of appeal.[6]
- July 1, 2026: The First District Court of Appeal affirms Charlie Adelson's convictions and sentence.[1]
- Aug. 7, 2026: Her lawyers ask for more time to file her initial brief, citing a medical emergency.[2]

## What happens next

The First District Court of Appeal will decide her appeal after the briefs are filed; her notice of appeal says she will challenge pretrial and evidentiary rulings as well as the verdict and sentence, Court TV reported.[5][2] *The sources reviewed give no date for a ruling or for oral argument, and report no ruling on the August 2026 extension request.* No one else has been charged; in 2023 State Attorney Jack Campbell said the investigation remained open, and her husband and daughter have denied involvement.[24][7]

## Sources

1. [Adelson v. State, No. 1D2024-0004 (opinion affirming Charles Adelson's convictions)](https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/fl-district-court-of-appeal/179791.html). Florida First District Court of Appeal, July 1, 2026 (via FindLaw). (court or official record)
2. [Adelson v. State, No. 1D2025-2848, Motion for Extension of Time for Filing the Initial Brief of Appellant](https://acis-api.flcourts.gov/courts/b82b30d5-bd3c-46d7-9451-1cb05e470873/cms/case/8550afae-21ee-4fb5-97c2-8a409e018101/docketentrydocuments/db6f1446-b592-4554-80d7-a80ec277836c). Florida First District Court of Appeal docket, filed Aug. 7, 2026. (court or official record)
3. ['Medical emergency' delays appeal for matriarch convicted of plotting son-in-law's murder-for-hire](https://www.courttv.com/news/medical-emergency-delays-appeal-for-matriarch-convicted-of-plotting-son-in-laws-murder-for-hire/). Court TV, August 2026. (news report)
4. [How a South Florida grandmother became the center of a murder-for-hire saga spanning 11 years](https://abcnews.com/US/south-florida-grandmother-center-murder-hire-saga-spanning/story?id=128005003). ABC News, Jan. 2, 2026. (news report)
5. [Donna Adelson files notice of appeal for conviction and sentencing](https://www.courttv.com/news/donna-adelson-files-notice-of-appeal-for-conviction-and-sentencing/). Court TV, November 2025. (news report)
6. [Donna Adelson files notice to appeal conviction and life sentence](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/11/04/donna-adelson-files-appeal-conviction-life-sentence/). WCTV, Nov. 4, 2025. (news report)
7. [South Florida matriarch sentenced to life in prison for hired killing of her ex-son-in-law](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2025/10/13/nation/south-florida-matriarch-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-for-hired-killing-of-her-ex-son-in-law/). Associated Press (via Bangor Daily News), Oct. 13, 2025. (news report)
8. [Judge denies request for new trial for Florida matriarch convicted in killing of ex-son-in-law](https://wtop.com/news/2025/09/judge-denies-request-for-new-trial-for-florida-matriarch-convicted-in-killing-of-ex-son-in-law). Associated Press (via WTOP), September 2025. (news report)
9. [Donna Adelson files motion for new trial, blaming judge, jurors](https://www.courttv.com/news/donna-adelson-files-motion-for-new-trial-blaming-judge-jurors/). Court TV, September 2025. (news report)
10. [What's next? State attorney addresses public 'curiosity and interest' after Donna Adelson guilty verdict](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/09/05/whats-next-state-attorney-addresses-public-curiosity-interest-after-donna-adelson-guilty-verdict/). WCTV, Sept. 5, 2025. (news report)
11. [Donna Adelson guilty as charged in murder for hire plot](https://www.wjhg.com/2025/09/04/donna-adelson-guilty-charged-murder-hire-plot). WJHG, Sept. 4, 2025. (news report)
12. [In 3 hours, jury finds Donna Adelson guilty of murder](https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/donna-adelson-judge-uses-this-tactic-to-get-mother-in-law-of-slain-law-prof-to-decide-whether-to-testify). ABA Journal, September 2025. (news report)
13. ['Find her guilty:' Prosecutors' closing arguments ask jury to follow the evidence to convict Donna Adelson](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/09/04/find-her-guilty-prosecutors-closing-arguments-ask-jury-follow-evidence-convict-donna-adelson/). WCTV, Sept. 4, 2025. (news report)
14. [Jury now deliberating in Donna Adelson murder trial after defense closes with fiery plea for acquittal](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/09/04/jury-now-deliberating-donna-adelson-murder-trial-after-defense-closes-with-fiery-plea-acquittal). WCTV, Sept. 4, 2025. (news report)
15. [Donna Adelson trial key moments so far as State rests its case](https://www.wtxl.com/downtown-tallahassee/donna-adelson-trial-key-moments-so-far-as-state-rests-its-case). WTXL, Sept. 1, 2025. (news report)
16. [State rests its case against Donna Adelson without calling son Charlie, defense to call witnesses Tuesday](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/08/29/state-rests-its-case-against-donna-adelson-without-calling-son-charlie-defense-call-witnesses-tuesday). WCTV, Aug. 29, 2025. (news report)
17. ['It's not me:' Donna Adelson's plea in call to undercover agent wraps up marathon day of testimony](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/08/28/its-not-me-donna-adelsons-plea-call-undercover-agent-wraps-up-marathon-day-testimony/). WCTV, Aug. 28, 2025. (news report)
18. ['You didn't do anything': Adelson calls become key focus on fifth day of testimony in murder trial](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/08/28/you-didnt-do-anything-adelson-calls-become-key-focus-fifth-day-testimony-murder-trial/). WCTV, Aug. 28, 2025. (news report)
19. [Jury asked to follow detailed communication records over Dan Markel's murder in Donna Adelson trial](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/08/27/jury-asked-follow-detailed-communication-records-over-dan-markels-murder-donna-adelson-trial/). WCTV, Aug. 27, 2025. (news report)
20. ['The truth needed to come out:' Katherine Magbanua returns to the witness stand in Donna Adelson murder trial](https://www.wctv.tv/2025/08/26/truth-needed-come-out-katherine-magbanua-returns-witness-stand-donna-adelson-murder-trial). WCTV, Aug. 26, 2025. (news report)
21. [Who is Donna Adelson? Evidence against latest person charged in Dan Markel murder-for-hire](https://www.yahoo.com/news/donna-adelson-evidence-against-latest-202857297.html). USA TODAY Network-Florida / Tallahassee Democrat (via Yahoo News), Nov. 15, 2023, updated Jan. 10, 2024. (news report)
22. [Donna Adelson indicted for murder of Dan Markel, charges match son Charlie's conviction](https://www.wctv.tv/2023/11/15/donna-adelson-indicted-murder-dan-markel-charges-match-son-charlies-conviction). WCTV, Nov. 15, 2023. (news report)
23. [Donna Adelson's arrest documents detail suicide, 'getting things in order,' plan to flee following son Charlie's murder conviction](https://www.wctv.tv/2023/11/14/donna-adelsons-arrest-documents-detail-suicide-getting-things-order-plan-flee-following-son-charlies-murder-conviction). WCTV, Nov. 14, 2023. (news report)
24. [South Florida matriarch charged with arranging her ex-son-in-law's death](https://www.wlrn.org/law-justice/2023-11-17/south-florida-matriarch-charged-with-arranging-her-ex-son-in-laws-death). Associated Press (via WLRN), Nov. 14, 2023, corrected Nov. 17, 2023. (news report)