Florida Dentist Denies Role in Brother-in-Law's Murder at Trial

A dentist from Florida who has been accused of planning the murder of his brother-in-law expressed his innocence with anxiety when testifying in court on Thursday. Charlie Adelson, a periodontist who is 47 years old, is currently on trial for supposedly hiring a hitman to murder Dan Markel, a well-known law professor at Florida State University, in 2014.

Markel was shot dead in his own driveway as he returned home one July morning amid a contentious divorce and custody battle with Adelson's sister Wendi. When asked by his attorney Thursday if he had any role in Markel's slaying, a fidgety Adelson replied simply: "No."

Adelson informed the jurors that he felt anxious because his "entire life relies on it." During the trial, Katherine Magbanua, his ex-girlfriend, stated that Adelson had asked her if she was aware of someone who could "hurt" Markel.

Magbanua was found guilty for her involvement in organizing the murder-for-hire and given a life term in jail. She chose to work along with prosecutors in incriminating Adelson, her sometimes romantic partner and supporter.

Based on Magbanua's statement, Adelson straightforwardly inquired at a Halloween party in 2013 if she was acquainted with someone who had the capability to harm Markel. “Do you know anybody that can harm someone?” she claims Adelson asked her point blank.

The triggerman Magbanua recruited, Sigfredo Garcia, was previously convicted of carrying out the shooting itself. He also received a life sentence for the cold-blooded slaying of the law professor and father of two as he arrived home in his car.

Markel had been in a bitter custody dispute over his young children with Wendi Adelson following the couple's divorce. Prosecutors allege the Adelson family developed a "raging hatred" of Markel as the marriage fell apart and the divorce turned more acrimonious over custody arrangements.

Members of the wealthy Adelson family allegedly became increasingly desperate to have Wendi Adelson gain full custody of the children and move them to South Florida where the Adelsons are based. Markel's mother alleges this motive directly led Charlie Adelson to enlist Garcia and Magbanua in a murder-for-hire plot targeting her son.

But on the stand Thursday, Adelson insisted he had no knowledge of any plan to harm Markel prior to the law professor's shocking slaying. He claims to have only learned after the fact that Garcia perpetrated the crime, allegedly pressured into the scheme by Magbanua.

Adelson testified that after Markel's death, Magbanua told him Garcia had shot Markel and was demanding payment for carrying out the hit. According to Adelson, Magbanua said Garcia threatened his own life if the payment wasn't made.

"She kept saying this was all her fault and she didn't know any of this was going to happen," Adelson told jurors about his conversation with Magbanua following the murder.

But prosecutors dismiss this account as self-serving fiction. They allege Adelson harbored resentment toward Markel and paid Magbanua to set up the hit at the behest of his family who were desperate to relocate Wendi Adelson and the children.

Cell phone records show a flurry of calls between Adelson and Magbanua in the weeks before Markel's death. Their communication conspicuously ceased just after the killing took place.

Adelson acknowledged making an offhand joke about hiring a hitman years earlier when he purchased a TV for his distressed sister as she separated from Markel. But he dismissed the remark as an ill-advised quip, not evidence of homicidal intent.

The prosecution argues the circumstances surrounding Markel's high-profile slaying point to the involvement of the Adelson family. Markel had antagonized his in-laws by resisting their attempts to move the children away from Tallahassee where he lived.

For Adelson, accused of bankrolling the cold-blooded murder of his sister’s ex-husband, the stakes could not be higher. If found guilty, he might be sentenced to life in prison for the bold murder that silenced a rival of the Adelsons in the courts.

With Adelson’s girlfriend turned state’s witness painting him as the mastermind, the beleaguered dentist maintains his innocence and claims ignorance of any murder plot. But prosecutors aim to convince the jury the weight of evidence implicates Adelson in his relative’s premeditated demise.

The trial has been closely followed given the high-profile nature of the slaying in Florida's capital. Markel was a rising star in legal academia prior to his shocking murder.

Prosecutors laid out a detailed timeline spanning from the Adelsons' alleged initial discussions of a hit through Magbanua's recruitment of Garcia to the morning Markel was tailed home from the gym and shot at close range.

The state contends Charlie Adelson harbored deep resentment toward Markel over the custody battle that complicated efforts to bring his sister Wendi and her children closer to the Adelsons' home. They say his offhand jokes betrayed homicidal thoughts that turned into a murder plot.

Adelson's defense team argues the dentist had a decent relationship with Markel and no knowledge of any scheme against him. They claim the investigation overlooked other possible suspects in Markel's orbit with potential motives.

Markel's parents told reporters the trial has been an agonizing ordeal but a necessary step toward justice for their son's premeditated killing. They expressed hope the jury sees through what they called Adelson's "web of lies" denying culpability.

The family also slammed the Adelsons for allegedly prioritizing their own interests over the wellbeing of Markel's young children, who lost their father. Defense attorneys responded the trial aims to scapegoat an innocent man based on circumstantial evidence.

Adelson appeared nervous and uneasy during hours of testimony. He hesitated frequently under cross-examination from prosecutors and gave vague responses critics say hurt his credibility.

Now the case rests in the jury's hands as they weigh whether the state proved Adelson's direct involvement in orchestrating the cold-blooded hit on his sister's ex-husband. The evidence appears stacked against the defendant, but his freedom hangs on the verdict.

For Adelson, acquittal could restore his reputation and livelihood after years living under a cloud of murder allegations. But a guilty verdict likely seals his fate to die behind bars, the central conspirator in a stranger-than-fiction family drama turned deadly.

Markel's parents hope to finally see justice served for their son's ruthless killing. But Adelson asserted on the stand: "I had absolutely nothing to do with Dan's murder." Soon 12 jurors will decide who they believe.

The trial verdict now awaits the jury's judgment on Adelson's professions of innocence. Their decision may provide long-sought closure for some or further prolong an already lengthy legal saga.