What led former ballerina Ashley Benefield to fatally shoot her husband?

After nearly four years, the trial of Ashley Benefield, the former ballerina charged with second-degree murder for shooting her estranged husband Doug, began in the summer of 2024. In the lead-up to the trial, a small group appeared near the courthouse to support Ashley's claims of self-defense. EVA BENEFIELD (On TikTok): So, I think that we should probably stop shoving cameras in 6-year-old's faces when they have no idea what's going on … Ashley texted Doug: "Wait what did she die of again?" Ashley texted back: "I thought I have heard you say something about medications or something…? Like bad drugs…?" JOHN SANT to 911: [It was] right next door to me. She just came over. Her estranged husband attacked her and she says she shot him. EVA BENEFIELD (On TikTok | June 28, 2023): Next week is her first in-person hearing …which means I'm gonna see her in person for the first time since … she killed my Dad. JOHN SANT TO 911: Calm down honey, calm down. (Ashley can be heard crying in the background) …She's with me now, quite upset, the weapon is here. … She says he attacked her, and she shot him. EVA BENEFIELD (on TikTok): "My dad got the justice that he deserves."

Among the supporters was Ashley's mother Alicia and Ashley and Doug's 6-year-old daughter Emerson, who stopped to speak to a reporter.

Emerson: It feels like I'm standing up for the right thing and that I'm doing the right thing for her.