Eva Benefield Releases Memoir on Father’s 2020 Killing by Ashley Benefield, Sentenced to 20 Years
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jul 25
Eva Benefield Releases Memoir on Father’s 2020 Killing by Ashley Benefield, Sentenced to 20 Years
2 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 25
Summary
Eva Benefield has published “Ghost Girl,” a memoir revisiting the 2020 shooting death of her father, Doug Benefield, by stepmother Ashley Benefield, who was later convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 20 years.
In interviews tied to the book, she said she immediately suspected Ashley after learning Doug had been shot, citing years of allegations Ashley made against him and what she described as escalating efforts to isolate and discredit him.
The memoir recounts a marriage Benefield says unraveled quickly after Doug married Ashley 13 days after meeting her, with conflicts deepening after Ashley moved to Florida and the couple entered a bitter custody fight over their daughter.
Doug Benefield was shot twice in September 2020 at Ashley’s mother’s Florida home; Ashley claimed self-defense, but prosecutors said abuse allegations were unsupported and aimed at securing sole custody.
The case, widely dubbed the “Black Swan” murder, ended with a lesser manslaughter conviction after Ashley had faced a second-degree murder charge, and Eva Benefield says the book is part of moving forward while preserving her father’s story.