GUILTY FL - FSU Law Professor Dan Markel Murdered by Hitmen #18

[Wishbone]

At one point do you all think they regretted it? Do you think there was immediate buyer's remorse (like, "omg what have we done? We actually caused a murder"), or was it after the bump with all the anxiety they felt after that...but maybe that wasn't enough to regret it? Was it when KM was arrested? Or when CA was convicted? Surely, they 100% regret it now. I mean, for god's sake, DA is talking about suicide. For, DA, 9.5 years of living your dream with your grandchildren can't be worth trading away the rest of your life. And I feel like 7 of those years was full of constant stress.

I don't think WA or DA have buyers remorse in the least. They couldn't control DM and hated him for that. He was a good father and yet they took him away from his boys that I'm sure deeply missed him. They didn't care because getting their way is all they care about. Plus, IMO I think they thought they would never get caught. It seems to me that when the dominoes started to fall they hated DM more even though they had already done away with him. Blamed him for the mess they were in because he wouldn't do what they wanted. They're just really evil. I would imagine if they had it all to do again that they would. I bet they both think about how they could be smarter about it and not get caught. It must consume them.... No, I don't see a bit of remorse after watching WA's smug testimony and the way DA was rolling her eyes and smirking during her arrangement.

 

[Orange Tabby]

ML has all 3 of Jeff Lacasse's interviews on Youtube. You are going to want to make some popcorn before watching. Its available here:

OMG! These interrogations are riveting. Lacasse figured out a lot of things early on.

Blue Shakehead has only listed some of the huge number of fascinating things JL said to the police.

On March 6, 2015 Lacasse gets to the heart of the case and says to the cop interviewing him:

“The people that have visited the [Adelson] house in Miami, they said to me, ‘has anyone considered that the whole family is in on it?’ … Their hobby is hating Danny … [Wendy] has no conscience.”

There is lots and lots and lots of stuff here to be used in a prosecution of Wendi.

Thank you Blue Shakehead (I was going to abbreviate your screen name, but did not want to call you BS—ha ha), this video is amazing.

 

[opt]

I wonder where Harvey is in all this? We don’t know much about his personality. I doubt he continued on to that plane to Vietnam.

The airline would not have wanted anything to do with Harvey after the arrest. Refund both tickets and bye-bye.

 

[FromGermany1]

Days After Dentist's Conviction for Murdering Brother-in-Law, Killer's Mom Is Arrested at Airport

Last week, Charlie Adelson was convicted of orchestrating the murder of his sister’s husband. Now their mother faces charges in the case.

people.com

The arrest came after her son, Charlie Adelson, 47, was found guilty on Nov. 6 of the same crimes his mother is charged with: first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and solicitation to commit murder.

Donna was arrested sooner than anticipated because she and her husband were leaving the country, Campbell told the Tallahassee Democrat.

 

[cottonweaver]

Yes, "innocent Wendi" told Jeff Lacasse that she got a new phone 4 days after the murder because she thought that LE had installed a bug. Det. Isom and Lacasse both laughed at the prospect, because its not the cold war anymore and LE does not need to plant a physical "bug" on a handset. But this is more evidence of consciousness of Wendi's guilt.

Rashbaum made a big deal about "why would Wendi tell you about Charlie seriously trying to hire the hitman the day before she broke up with you?" and its probably a good question. It assumes that Wendi is a rational person and not a complete emotional disaster. Or, as Lacasse and his therapist suggest - a sociopath. But Wendi's treatment of Lacasse after the murder seem to be a cover-up....

- she tells all their mutual friends that police are seriously investigating Jeff for this as a crime of passion
- she tells Jeff that she tried to "protect him" from LE and that they wanted his address and she didn't want to give it to them.
- she tells Jeff that she was instructed by LE to not have any contact with him because he was a suspect. (Isom says that never happened because LE would WANT a suspect to be talking)
- she tells Jeff that LE will likely never solve the murder because Danny had so many enemies. (She told LE the week before that he had no enemies or vices. She also told Rob Adelson the same thing - that Dan had endless enemies).
- she was extremely upset at Jeff because he attended Markel's funeral
- she tries to convince Jeff that she loved Tallahassee and never wanted to move. He found this deeply disturbing as it was the complete opposite of their daily conversations for months leading up to murder
- a week after the murder, she had zero sympathy or empathy for Dan Markel. She was still full of complete rage and hatred towards him.
- She told Jeff "50 times" that she had nothing to do with the murder. )She knew he would suspect her or her family because he'd spent the last 6 months listening to how much she hated him. Wanted Lacasse on her side.)
- she said the boys were adjusting really well. They having some issues like wetting the bed and stuff but it" had nothing to do with Danny's murder" - odd

---
One thing is sure - the Adelsons picked the wrong patsy. Lacasse will make an excellent witness in all the upcoming trials.

I know I keep harping on this point but your excellent list of what she'd said to Jeff in a couple of calls post 22 July 2014 reminds me once again that the 50+ people who were on Team Wendi before & after the murder must have a rich seam of material which they've still never volunteered to Law Enforcement.

It's not hard to use one's imagination to speculate all of the weird and contradictory, incriminating stuff she'll have said to each of them over the phone.

'See something, say something' Whatever happened to that?

 

[cottonweaver]

I love STS but its frustrating when they have people on who don't know the case.

"They have nothing on Harvey". I mean, they have way LESS. But he was with Donna dropping bags full of mouldy money off at Charlie's house the night of the murder to pay the killers. He was at Matsuri wondering aloud why the blackmailer never came to him and praising the cops - he never thought they were smart enough to figure it out. He's meeting Charlie in secret with Donna throughout. He was taking days off work during the bump cause he was so stressed. Magbanua's Lexus, which was valued at $6,000 was sold from Harvey to Katie for $1,700. He never wrote the checks but his dental practise is ultimately paying Magbanua for a no-show job. Thats not "nothing".

"They don't have any evidence on Wendi, except driving by the crime scene". Ummmmmm, incorrect.

Also too many guests on on that episode. Lots of rehashing & going around in circles.

ETA
Have just read the comments on Ryan F.
He should've been on a separate show where Joel could've picked up on the intriguing answers and 'No comment' replies he'd given to Judy ( Asian American Legal Focus) in her show last week.
Questioning is a craft - when done well.

The discussion around prosecuting for perjury etc - that was kinda useful but not a lot of substance in that episode

 

[cottonweaver]

It is just great, watching these wealthy crooks having their monies dwindle away on legal fees.
Money is so important to them.
If DA spent more money on a return ticket to Vietnam, she could have stated 'it was just a holiday'.
BUT needed to save a few more dollars.
Ha, Ha.

yup

reminds me of that case that @Seattle1 mentioned this week.
Harvey asks a small law firm to do some work for him - in 2016, after they'd been subpoeana'd - on a verbal contract & flat fee of $20k.
Harvey has the lawyer do a lot of work, pays him $10k upfront on AMex card and then reneges on the deal. The lawyer had to sue him and Amex to get his $10k back.

These people are multi-millionaires but HA is happy to sc/rew a small business ( maybe even an acquaintance - it was a Jewish law firm) for the sake of $10k?

( Also, now think back to GC saying at trial, wtte ' well, hiring a hitman was cheaper than offering Dan the bribe wasn't it?.' I'm not trying to suggest that it's all about the money for the Adelsons, cause there's also a strong theme of always wanting to win & enjoying 'getting one over people', even when the $amounts are small. )

 

[iamshadow21]

Finally up to date here after a week or so of reading, and wow, was not expecting Donna to try to flee though I really should have. This whole case has been one long series of boneheaded errors which would be funny if a good man just trying to be a dad to his sons hadn't died. But now it's five down, two to go. Brilliant.

Donna's mug shot is making me want to rewatch Hot Fuzz. You're going to jail...

MOO

 

[Seattle1]

11/14/23

A week after Charlie Adelson was convicted in a murder-for-hire plot to kill his ex-brother-in-law, Dan Markel, his mother has been arrested on similar charges. Donna Adelson is now also accused of killing Markel by hiring a hitman. Markel was in a bitter custody battle with Donna's daughter, Wendi Adelson, when he was gunned down. #CourtTV investigates the evidence implicating Donna.

00:00 Donna Adelson's Arrest
18:48 Donna Meddling in The Divorce
30:15 Donna's Involvement in Dan Markel's Murder

 

[FreddyG]

I think they just regret getting caught.

Looking at her mugshot, I wonder if she even regrets that. She probably saw the writing on the wall for a while starting with CA"s arrest. The lady in the mugshot looks steely and resigned--even defiant (consider by contrast CA's mugshot, in which he looked equal parts terrified and nearly crying). She's not ancient but she's lived a long and full life. One possibility is that she's like, "Hey, I won. I got rid of that a$$hole who was trapping my precious daughter and grandkids in Tallahassee, spent over a decade with them, and now they're all safely ensconced in SoFla with a shitload of money." This may seem insane and pathological, but then again we're talking about a woman who orchestrated a murder to get what she wanted. Insane and pathological does not seem farfetched at all to me. And so I could totally see her saying "I got what I wanted, and if that means I now have to spend the rest of my (relatively short at this point) life in prison, so be it." Not to mention the possibility that some rich Miami lawyer may, just may be able to manufacture pity and/or RD in one of twelve jury members.

Lots of speculation, of course, but seeing how hard she looked in her mug shot compared to CA's lost-boy almost-weeping mugshot has really made me think more about their relative character. In particular, it makes me think she was the tough guy all along and his tough-guy act was just overcompensation for being a momma's boy.

 

[Zedzded]

At one point do you all think they regretted it? Do you think there was immediate buyer's remorse (like, "omg what have we done? We actually caused a murder"), or was it after the bump with all the anxiety they felt after that...but maybe that wasn't enough to regret it? Was it when KM was arrested? Or when CA was convicted? Surely, they 100% regret it now. I mean, for god's sake, DA is talking about suicide. For, DA, 9.5 years of living your dream with your grandchildren can't be worth trading away the rest of your life. And I feel like 7 of those years was full of constant stress

I think Harvey probably regretted it. He had the least involvement, probably didn't GAF about Dan Markel, but I feel he may have thought it was a bad idea. Him and Donna were doing great, a happy marriage (from what I've read), very wealthy, successful kids, why rock the boat. Why do something so extreme that has the ability to destroy their lives? I feel DA, WA and CA were obsessed with destroying DM, they weren't going to let him beat the Adelson's and when he beat them in court they had him killed. I just don't think Harvey was as invested as they were. He's still complicit, he knew about the plan to kill DM, but I just sense he wasn't 100% onboard with it. And perhaps he's going to be the one that rolls on everyone else.

 

[Deleted member 302228]

Yes, I agree. Not only does it sound excessive, there's no provenance for the figure and no background establishing the person "estimating" the amount had any decent basis for the estimate.

They did not hire local Tallahassee counsel nor a large team of attorneys like you'd expect- in fact Katherine Magbanua literally had more attorneys at the table, and even Garcia had an investigator there (CA didn't)- so maybe the money is running out? Appellate-wise CA is looking at similar levels of cost which will of course eventually fail, and now they have to pay for Donna's defense as well. Not to mention Lauro in the courtroom for 1.5 days, and he's known for being extremely expensive....

 

[Deleted member 302228]

Their Assets should be frozen STAT. MOO

For the attorneys here, I thought if you moved money into a trust with an impending action against you, a court could indeed make it recoverable. CA made major asset moves in 2016 after his PCA was released, now DA and HA move money after they find out about a grand jury. Can't a court find them still liable for monies deliberately moved to avoid recovery?

 

[Zedzded]

For the attorneys here, I thought if you moved money into a trust with an impending action against you, a court could indeed make it recoverable. CA made major asset moves in 2016 after his PCA was released, now DA and HA move money after they find out about a grand jury. Can't a court find them still liable for monies deliberately moved to avoid recovery?

I think if it was fraud case, for example, that involved money then yes, but for a murder case, I don't think they can freeze assets.

 

[FreddyG]

I think if it was fraud case, for example, that involved money then yes, but for a murder case, I don't think they can freeze assets.

This is right. If the transfer is fraudulent, it can be invalidated. So you can't transfer funds to a trust to avoid having to pay a money judgment. But here the money is not being hidden to avoid a judgment, so it's not a fraudulent transfer.

 

[ilovewings]

One week after her son’s murder conviction, Donna Adelson is arrested

State Attorney Jack Campbell says Donna Adelson and her husband bought one-way tickets to Vietnam Monday. She was arrested at Miami International Airport hours later.

news.wfsu.org

Campbell told WFSU that Adelson and her husband Harvey had one-way plane tickets to Vietnam that were purchased earlier in the day.

Looks like a quick getaway. Wonder what made them move so fast?

one way ticket to Vietnam? seriously. LMAO--

 

[Sustained]

I think Harvey probably regretted it. He had the least involvement, probably didn't GAF about Dan Markel, but I feel he may have thought it was a bad idea. Him and Donna were doing great, a happy marriage (from what I've read), very wealthy, successful kids, why rock the boat. Why do something so extreme that has the ability to destroy their lives? I feel DA, WA and CA were obsessed with destroying DM, they weren't going to let him beat the Adelson's and when he beat them in court they had him killed. I just don't think Harvey was as invested as they were. He's still complicit, he knew about the plan to kill DM, but I just sense he wasn't 100% onboard with it. And perhaps he's going to be the one that rolls on everyone else.

It's obvious to me that DA was calling the shots. All of that BS about the long drives to Tallahassee, losing income at the dental practice, etc was simply cover for DA saying "the boys will be raised as I say - period". With DM/WA in Tally, HA and or DA could have flown up once a month or had WA and the kids fly down to Miami. With their resources, no issue with expenses and a similar arrangement would have been fine with 99% of families in a long-distance situation. The A's could have even bought a condo in Tally as well if it was uncomfortable to stay on Trescott. And why did DA need to be at the Adelson Clinic when an office manager could have been hired ? Control ... she is a demon who deserves to rot in prison.

 

[ilovewings]

It's obvious to me that DA was calling the shots. All of that BS about the long drives to Tallahassee, losing income at the dental practice, etc was simply cover for DA saying "the boys will be raised as I say - period". With DM/WA in Tally, HA and or CA could have flown up once a month or had WA and the kids fly down to Miami. With their resources, no issue with expenses and a similar arrangement would have been fine with 99% of families in a long-distance situation. The A's could have even bought a condo in Tally as well if it was uncomfortable to stay on Trescott. And why did DA need to be at the Adelson Clinic when an office manage could have been hired ? Control ... she is a demon who deserves to rot in prison.

I concur she is demon- she was the puppet master pulling the strings of all her family members--- I feel so badly for Dan Markel---he fell in love with a woman controlled totally by her, dare I say, evil mother

 

[userunnamed]

omg this case has reached the front page of cnn.com.
link

The title is, "Florida woman is charged with plotting her former son-in-law’s death a week after her son is convicted of murder".

 

[amicuscurie]

I think Harvey probably regretted it. He had the least involvement, probably didn't GAF about Dan Markel, but I feel he may have thought it was a bad idea. Him and Donna were doing great, a happy marriage (from what I've read), very wealthy, successful kids, why rock the boat. Why do something so extreme that has the ability to destroy their lives? I feel DA, WA and CA were obsessed with destroying DM, they weren't going to let him beat the Adelson's and when he beat them in court they had him killed. I just don't think Harvey was as invested as they were. He's still complicit, he knew about the plan to kill DM, but I just sense he wasn't 100% onboard with it. And perhaps he's going to be the one that rolls on everyone else.

I wonder about Harvey. In some of the texts that were shown at trial, Donna appears to be looking for “ alone time” (in the bathroom!) to talk to Charlie about “Dad’s birthday.”. Is she trying to hide from Harvey? I do believe he was looped in at some point, because the records show he was in the car with Donna outside Charlie’s house the night of the murder. But he may not have been involved from the beginning. This was Donna and Charlie’s plan, I think. I can’t decide which of them might have first mentioned it as an option to the other.