Jury convicts Florida dentist in 2014 murder-for-hire death of ex-brother-in-law

A jury Monday found a Florida dentist guilty in a 2014 murder-for-hire plot in the death of this brother-in-law, a Florida State University law professor, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.

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Charles Adelson paid to have FSU professor Dan Markel shot and killed in his Tallahassee driveway, jurors decided, after about three hours of deliberation. Adelson was found guilty on all counts.

According to The Democrat, Adelson, 47, mouthed the word “no” and slowly put his head down on the defense table after the first verdict -- guilty on first-degree murder – was read.

Prosecutors say Markel’s death came amid a custody battle between him and his ex-wife, Wendi Adelson. Wendi Adelson is Charles Adelson’s sister.

Wendi Adelson, along with her parents, have denied any involvement in the murder.

Markel, then 41, was killed the morning of July 18, 2014, after dropping the two sons he shared with Wendi Adelson off at daycare, going to the gym and pulling into the garage of his home. Markel was shot twice in the head at point-blank range.

He died 14 hours later.

Markel’s family said they found relief from the verdict Monday.

“This has been a really long and terrible ordeal for all of us,” Shelly Markel, Dan Marke’s sister, said. “It’s taken a long toll on our lives. And there’s a real sense of relief today.”

The verdict was the fourth in the case.