Justice and Hope After Dan Markel’s Murder Verdict
It’s been more than a decade since the shocking murder of Canadian-born law professor Dan Markel, and his family has once again found themselves in a Florida courtroom. On September 4th, 2025, a jury in Tallahassee returned a guilty verdict against his former mother-in-law, Donna Adelson. At 75 years old, she was found guilty of first-degree murder for orchestrating the 2014 contract killing that ended Dan’s life.
Markel, who was just 41 at the time, was ambushed and shot outside his home by two hired gunmen. The motive, prosecutors explained, was tied to a bitter custody battle. His former wife, Wendi Adelson, had wanted to relocate their two young boys closer to her family in Miami. But Dan opposed the move, and his resistance set off a tragic chain of events. Prosecutors told the court that Donna Adelson masterminded the plan, paying $100,000 to have her son-in-law killed.
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This conviction is not the first connected to the case. Donna’s son, dentist Charles Adelson, was found guilty last year. His former girlfriend, along with the two gunmen, were also convicted. That brings the total to five people now serving time for their roles in the crime. Wendi Adelson, however, has not been charged and continues to deny any involvement.
For Dan’s Canadian family, each trial reopens painful wounds. His mother, Ruth Markel, and father, Phil, traveled from Toronto to deliver their victim impact statements. Ruth described her son’s killing as a “murder of convenience”—a decision that allowed one grandmother to live near her grandchildren at the cost of destroying countless lives. Phil Markel took a Jewish blessing traditionally offered as a wish for long life and turned it into a pointed curse, saying he hoped Donna would live to 100—but spend every remaining day alone in her jail cell, haunted by the harm she caused.
The courtroom heard how after Dan’s death, his children were moved to Miami and even had their last names changed to Adelson. For years, contact between the boys and their Canadian grandparents was cut off, until a new Florida law—signed by Governor Ron DeSantis in 2022—granted visitation rights to grandparents in cases involving violent family crimes. Ruth Markel has spoken openly about the struggle of maintaining even limited connections with her grandsons. Zoom calls and brief supervised visits have replaced natural relationships. Still, she remains hopeful that one day Benji and Lincoln will feel free to spend more time in Toronto, learning about their father’s life and legacy.
Dan Markel was more than the victim of a notorious case. Born in Montreal and raised in Toronto, he studied at Cambridge, Hebrew University, and Harvard before becoming a respected legal scholar at Florida State University. His legacy is being honored through scholarship projects, legal initiatives, and even upcoming documentaries.
For his family, justice in the courtroom is only part of the journey. The deeper hope is that his children will eventually reconnect fully with their Canadian roots and their father’s memory, beyond the shadow of the Adelson family’s crimes. Dan’s loved ones remind the world that behind the headlines, a treasured son, brother, and father was stolen, and his absence continues to shape their lives every day.
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