TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Court TV) — Newly released video shows convicted killer Charlie Adelson smiling and even stopping for a fast-food meal while being transported to the Leon County Jail in Florida last month for his mother’s trial in the murder-for-hire plot against his former brother-in-law.
Charlie Adelson whispers with his defense attorney Daniel Rashbaum before his sentencing Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2023. (Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat/Pool)
The video shows Adelson in the back of a transport van, where he appears to be in a surprisingly good mood. At one point, the van driver pulls into a Wendy’s, where Adelson can be heard thanking the officer for the meal.
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The transport took place as Adelson was moved to Leon County for the trial of his mother, Donna Adelson. Both have been convicted for their roles in the 2014 murder of Florida State University law professor Dan Markel.
The timing of the video’s release coincides with the news that Katherine Magbanua, Charlie’s ex-girlfriend who served as the conduit to the hitmen, was also recently at the Leon County Jail. Magbanua testified in Donna’s trial. Charlie was ultimately not called as a witness.
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Markel was shot and killed in his garage in July 2014 amid a bitter custody dispute with Charlie’s sister, Wendi Adelson. Prosecutors argued that the Adelson family orchestrated the murder because a judge had denied Wendi’s request to relocate her children from Tallahassee to South Florida, near the rest of her family.
Charlie was convicted in November 2023 for hiring the hitmen who killed Markel and is currently serving a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Donna was convicted on charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy and solicitation in September and is awaiting sentencing.
Magbanua is currently serving a life sentence after being found guilty of first-degree murder in 2022 for her role as the middlewoman. The two hitmen, Sigfredo Garcia and Luis Rivera, were also convicted. Garcia, the triggerman, is serving a life sentence, while Rivera, the driver, took a plea deal for 19 years in exchange for his testimony against the others.
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