Slain dad's daughter knew ‘Black Swan’ ex-ballerina shot him after one call: 'She killed him, didn't she?'

When Eva Benefield's uncle Dave called with "some truly atrocious news," she thought of 1 person.

"She killed him, didn’t she?" Benefield recalled asking earlier her uncle confirmed that her father, Doug Benefield, had been fatally shot.

Benefield said she instantly suspected her stepmother, erstwhile ballerina Ashley Benefield.

'BLACK SWAN' MURDER: SLAIN DAD'S DAUGHTER RIPS KILLER BALLERINA STEPMOM AT SENTENCING

Eva Benefield, girl of Doug Benefield, returns to her spot aft presenting her unfortunate interaction connection successful tribunal astatine the sentencing for Ashley Benefield astatine the Manatee County Judicial Center. Ashley Benefield was sentenced to 20 years successful situation for the 2020 sidesplitting of her husband, Doug Benefield successful Lakewood Ranch. Benefield claimed the shooting was successful self-defense, but a assemblage convicted her of manslaughter. (POOL PHOTO/Mike Lang/Sarasota Herald-Tribune/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

"At that point, I knew astir the countless allegations she had made against my dad," Benefield, who has documented her father's lawsuit connected TikTok, told Fox News Digital.

"There was thing astir her that made her obsessed with the thought that my dada was not a bully person," she said. "She had called the cops aggregate times connected my dad. She had called CPS connected my dad. I knew determination was nary bound and nary bounds — she was going to bash thing she could to framework my dada successful a antagonistic light. When my uncle said, 'Your dad's been shot,' who other was helium spending clip with successful Florida? I conscionable knew."

The sidesplitting was dubbed "The Black Swan Case" and "The Black Swan Murder" by the media, drafting comparisons to Natalie Portman's 2010 intelligence thriller. (Mike Lang / USA TODAY NETWORK)

In 2024, Ashley was sentenced to 20 years successful situation aft being convicted of manslaughter successful the 2020 shooting decease of her estranged husband. Now, successful her memoir, "Ghost Girl: Surviving the Black Swan Murder," Benefield is reflecting connected her father's death, their narration and the years starring up to the fatal shooting.

"Ghost Girl: Surviving the Black Swan Murder ― A Memoir" by Eva Benefield is retired now. (Gallery Books)

Benefield was inactive successful precocious schoolhouse erstwhile her mother, Renee Benefield, died from a bosom condition. As the household reeled from the loss, Doug made his girl his apical priority.

Benefield described her begetter arsenic gentle, diligent and endlessly funny — an creator who was ever learning thing new.

"Those 9 months betwixt my ma passing distant and my dada marrying Ashley were astir apt immoderate of the champion memories I person with my dad," she said.

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A young Eva Benefield is seen present with her father, Doug Benefield. They became incredibly adjacent aft she mislaid her mother. (Courtesy of Eva Benefield)

"We were close. I was ever pursuing his lead. He would person each of these projects successful the garage, and I would conscionable beryllium with him, ticker him. Those 9 months erstwhile it was conscionable the 2 of us, we were truly leaning connected each other. Anything I needed, helium was determination for me."

More than a twelvemonth earlier helium was killed, Doug astir walked distant from his 2nd marriage, which was plagued with problems.

"'That's it. I'm done. I've tried everything to amusement her that I'm a bully guy, that I emotion her, and she conscionable won't judge me. She keeps making these allegations against me,'" Benefield recalled him saying.

Former ballet dancer Ashley Benefield, was accused of fatally shooting her husband, Doug Benefield, successful September 2020. (Facebook)

"He was going to battalion up and leave," she said. "He was going to travel backmost to Charleston."

Instead, Benefield urged her begetter to enactment 1 much time truthful her younger sister, Emerson, could observe Easter with him.

"I told him, 'She's astatine the property wherever she's going to retrieve that,'" Benefield said. "You request to enactment and beryllium with her, and past you tin travel to Charleston tomorrow. He was like, ‘You’re right. We’ll unfastened Easter baskets. I’ll beryllium backmost successful Charleston tomorrow.’"

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Ashley Benefield claimed she changeable and killed her hubby of 4 years, Doug Benefield, successful self-defense. (Facebook)

"And that was it," she continued. "I deliberation that was the 1 clip I saw him deliberation astir leaving and accidental helium was going to bash it, and past helium didn’t."

Looking back, Benefield can't assistance but wonderment if that determination changed everything.

"I deliberation helium stayed successful Florida for 1 excessively galore days aft that," she said.

Eva Benefield is seen present with her parents. Her parent died successful 2015. (Courtesy of Eva Benefield)

Within a twelvemonth aft losing his archetypal wife, Doug, 54, joined Ashley Byers — aboriginal Ashley Benefield — a 24-year-old erstwhile swimsuit model, conscionable 13 days aft they met.

"I had conscionable an off-putting feeling," Benefield said. "Within 3 days, my dada went from having nary emotion beingness since my precocious parent died to being joined to a 24-year-old. I thought they were dating casually, not married. It was the time aft gathering her that I learned they were married."

Benefield said she rapidly realized Ashley was "not the saccharine miss she marketed herself to be." In "Ghost Girl," she described however her location became progressively hostile aft Ashley moved in.

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Ashley Benefield was a erstwhile ballerina and model. (Facebook)

Benefield alleged her stepmother began isolating her from her father, blaming her for household conflicts, speechmaking her backstage journal, publically embarrassing her and seeking to propulsion her retired of the household dynamic.

"I truly wanted her to similar me," Benefield wrote. "But I could archer she did not similar maine astatine all, and it wasn't adjacent personal. I was conscionable successful the way."

"There were moments wherever I felt it was inappropriate," Benefield told Fox News Digital. "I'd travel location from school, and she would beryllium sitting successful a bra and underwear connected the room counter, waiting for my dada to get home. She took maine to the market store 1 clip and showed maine she had a weapon successful her bra. She started a screaming lucifer betwixt us. My dada wasn't yelling back, but she was yelling astatine my dada implicit small things I did that upset her."

Eva Benefield (pictured here) said beingness astatine location became progressively hard arsenic Ashley Benefield made repeated accusations against Doug Benefield. (POOL PHOTO/Mike Lang/Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Benefield said Ashley besides attempted to erase her precocious mother.

"She came successful and got escaped of everything that reminded maine of my ma successful my room," Benefield said. "There were pictures connected the walls of my ma and me. There was a missive from my mom. She took down everything. It was each gone.

"She was asking my dada to accidental that my ma meant thing to him. That stung due to the fact that I knew that wasn't true, but she needed to perceive that. She needed to spot that the location was escaped of everything that reminded him of my mom. She caused a batch of arguments, and they were implicit small things. She was driving a wedge betwixt my dada and me."

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By the clip the couple's daughter, Emerson, was calved successful March 2018, Ashley Benefield (pictured here) had near Doug successful South Carolina and moved successful with her parent successful Florida. (Mike Lang / USA TODAY NETWORK)

In 2017, Ashley launched the American National Ballet, a Charleston-based creation company. Doug threw himself into the venture. When the institution collapsed aboriginal that year, Ashley returned to Florida portion large with Emerson.

Doug progressively spent his clip successful Florida trying to repair his narration with Ashley and beryllium portion of Emerson's life. Benefield stayed down successful Charleston to decorativeness precocious school, aboriginal penning that she wanted to region herself from the turmoil surrounding her father.

"At a definite point, I asked my dada to permission maine retired of their relationship," Benefield said. "I knew it wasn't going to get better. I conscionable felt, 'I'll crook 18, and I tin determination retired if she's inactive around.' That was my plan. But my dada thought things would get better. She would effort to person him that things were getting better, and helium felt, 'We're yet figuring our issues out.' Then she would impeach him of each these mendacious allegations. But I bash deliberation helium felt things would crook around."

Dave Benefield, member of Doug Benefield, returns to his spot aft presenting his unfortunate interaction connection astatine the sentencing for Ashley Benefield astatine the Manatee County Judicial Center. (POOL PHOTO/Mike Lang/Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

"It ne'er got better," Benefield said.

In September 2020, Doug was killed astatine the Lakewood Ranch, Florida, location wherever Ashley was staying with her mother. The shooting came arsenic the estranged mates was embroiled successful a contentious custody quality implicit their daughter. Ashley was arrested successful November of that year.

Ashley claimed she changeable and killed her estranged husband, 58, successful self-defense, arguing she opened occurrence connected the Navy seasoned aft ordering him retired of her location and alleging helium refused to comply and deed her successful the face.

EX-BALLERINA CONVICTED OF MANSLAUGHTER IN HIGH-PROFILE 'BLACK SWAN MURDER' CASE

Doug Benefield was changeable doubly wrong his mother-in-law’s house. Ashley Benefield was arrested connected Nov. 4, 2020.

"I thought helium was going to termination me," Ashley testified during the trial. Investigators said she showed nary disposable signs of carnal maltreatment aft the shooting.

Ashley accused Doug of psychologically abusing her, but prosecutors argued the allegations were unsupported by the evidence. They noted she made the allegations successful an effort to summation sole custody of their daughter.

Benefield would aboriginal travel face-to-face with Ashley successful court.

Eva Benefield, girl of Doug Benefield, is sworn successful earlier making her unfortunate interaction connection during a sentencing proceeding for Ashley Benefield astatine the Manatee County Judicial Center. (POOL PHOTO/Mike Lang/Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

"It was a weird feeling, knowing this was my dad's killer," Benefield said. "When I saw her, I felt, 'My dada is truly dead. This is the miss who killed him.' I got angry. But I was determination to get justice. I needed to amusement her that I'm beardown and she's not going to get distant with this."

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During her unfortunate interaction statement, Benefield said, "What hurts maine the astir is not the thought of not having my dada anymore due to the fact that I volition ever person him astir successful spirit. ... What breaks my bosom the astir is reasoning astir however helium recovered you astatine specified a susceptible portion of his life."

WATCH: Ashley Benefield sentenced successful 'Black Swan murder' case

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Ashley was charged with second-degree execution but was convicted of the lesser complaint of manslaughter aft astir 7 hours of deliberations. She was sentenced to 20 years successful prison.

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Eva Benefield is simply a TikTok contented creator and the proprietor of her ain apparel company, Ghost Cowboy. She is based successful Charleston, South Carolina. (Courtesy of Eva Benefield)

Today, Benefield said she's focused connected moving guardant portion carrying the lessons her begetter near behind.

"I privation helium could person gotten retired of that situation," she said. "But I would privation him to cognize that his girl turned retired OK."