is carol lynn benson kendall still alive

The Trustees set up a trust for Kendall, a trust for Stephen, and a share for Scott. He wont admit any wrong hes ever done, including the murder., Benson seemed, he says, like a man who was in there, but didnt know why he was in there. Benson said he first went to get coffee and doughnuts at a nearby store. Steven Benson turned gray behind bars and died, to little fanfare. Success! Benson, he recalled, had a reputation as a wimp., He didnt fit in, Schelling said. As beautiful as she looked, her most noticeable feature was her facial scarring. In addition to the fatal wound to the head, Associate Medical Examiner Anthony Clark noted a puncture wound to the left scalp and multiple bruises on Benson's torso, upper and lower extremities. "), Near the end of his testimony, he said he had finally told Margaret Benson, "You have to stop being a bank for your children." (Photo: File), Cameraman Al Durruthy records video footage of a Chevrolet Suburban outside the home of Mary Quinn, Wednesday afternoon (June 4), in the Quail Creek Estates in North Naples. He thought he was better than everybody else.. Collier Circuit Judge Hugh D. Hayes issued the ruling Monday. Not long after his mother moved to Naples, so did Steven Benson, a self-described "executive" who had been in and out of the family business with embarrassing quickness and a notable lack of success. Thats the whole thing: self, self, self and me, me, me and me. He was calm as a cucumber, he said. But everyone agreed that she had done so well, it might be unwise to risk a second appearance. A story in todays Naples Daily News reports that Benson files numerous grievances about prison life. If they had objections they were to say, quietly, "May we approach the bench?" Represented by attorney Michael McDonnell, Steven Benson was ultimately convicted of first degree murder, attempted first degree murder, and arson of a dwelling. The siblings did not return phone messages Friday. Support local journalism. She was crying. . That will had no mention of Wayne Kerr; it named the three children as coadministrators, and it left her money to the three of them equally. Young, the investigator, said hes seen more horrendous cases than the Benson case, ones where people killed their children by drowning them in their mothers blood. He said Steven was laughing. McDonnell did succeed in keeping the jury from hearing the testimony of the groundskeeper who had said he had seen Steven playing with a remote-control bomb device in Pennsylvania, but he was not able to stop a former employe from telling the jury that at the wake, Steven mentioned to a small group that he had "made bombs as a kid.". But showing little emotion after that. Just sort of odd, very different.. Im hot! from the burning car. Just follow the money, and you could see what he was doing.. Eric Strachan/Naples Daily News, Steven Benson, right, enters Lee County Court with his defense attorney Mike McDonnell as the jury selection portion of his murder trial Monday, July 14, 1986. Maybe it was the money, the power and the greed, they say. Had she not left the rear door of the unairconditioned Chevy Suburban wagon open on that miserably hot July morning 13 months ago in Naples, Fla., she, like her mother and her 21-year-old adopted "brother" Scott, would also be dead. The Daughter and Her Son. Bensons own sister, Carol Lynn Kendall, then 40, who survived the blast but was severely burned, wanting to make sure her brother was sentenced to life in prison for the killings. Margaret and Scott died instantly, and Caroline was rushed to the hospital with severe burns. It was the O.J. [13] When the Challenger space shuttle exploded a year after the Florida murders, Hitchcock broke down, Murphy recalls. She thought he had been embezzling family funds and had called her attorney to check into it. He got down from his ladder, and walked toward the tennis courts, where he found Steven holding what appeared to be a remote control device. Under the law, jurors are not supposed to take this into consideration. Eventually the second will was ruled valid, but before that happened, Steve Benson was arrested. Dad was very religious, she said. Hes had no contact at all.. The matricide was a huge point, she said. He just stood there. "Sharp force head trauma. But that changed over the next three weeks, as witness after witness took the stand. File photo. "I couldn't understand why he wasn't coming over to help me," she testified to a packed but dead silent courtroom. malevolent." He was born in 1951 in Baltimore. Oh no, she thought. He was born in 1951 in Baltimore. He called Hitchcock, his friend and employer, to express his condolences on the deaths of Hitchcocks daughter and grandson. ", Should the court decide that the 3-year-old in question is indeed the daughter of the late Scott Benson, the child could inherit either (depending on what happens to the man who might be her Uncle Steven) one-third or one-half of Margaret Benson's $10 million estate, and establish her as a legitimate claimant to the estate of the 89-year-old Harry Hitchcock, who is said to be worth as much as $400 million. Another daily attendee was a lawyer representing the trust funds left by Harry Hitchcock's late wife. Carol Lynn Benson Kendall, 2719 Hollywood Blvd., Suite 164, Hollywood, disbarred effective immediately, following a September 22 court order. Macron wont let go off Africa so easily, he is love sick, Canadas Debt Crisis: A Never-Ending Burden Passed On From Generation to Generation, Alcohol tax in Canada: Canadian government is taking a sip out of your beer. Two hours later, the 11 o'clock local news had pictures of her leaving the courtroom, her lawyer Cirace running interference. Inmates told investigators that Washington planned to extort $1,000 from Benson within days after arriving at Taylor Correctional Institution. At this time, I was not convinced he could really murder his mother and his adopted brother and sister, said the Fort Myers resident, now 68. Other testimony revealed another regular expenditure. The 12 members of the jury listen to arguments in the Florida courtroom where they convicted Steven Benson in 1986 of blowing up his family in a Chevy Suburban in the driveway of their Naples, Fla., home on July 9, 1985. ", When they got back to Naples, Margaret told Steven she wanted to meet with him and Kerr that evening and "talk business." Kendall was injured in the car-bomb that killed her son, Scott Benson, and mother, Margaret Benson, on July 9, 1985, in front of their Naples, Fla., home. TV show Monday features Benson family murders, one of Naples' notorious crimes, Lighthouse Project - History: Murderers, moonshiners, swindlers lead rogues gallery of SW Florida crooks, Naples pipe bomb killer Steven Benson dies in prison. Stating that he could not give money to one of the children and not the other, Judge Hayes then awarded $244,000 to Carol Lynn Kendall, who also had legal bills. Benson, then 33, was running out of it and wanted to inherit his mother's. But a witness for the defense, Steven's secretary, testifed Steven never left the office during the times when the pipe and end caps were purchased. He seldom looked at Steven.The defendant watched his grandfather enter the courtroom, but after that he never looked at him. Murphy said her father sent Sands as a gesture of goodwill. At the age of 63, Margaret Benson, was killed by her son, Steven Benson, with a car bomb that also took the life of her her grandson, Scott Benson, and injured her daughter, Carol Lynn Kendall, on July 9, 1985, in fron t of their Naples, Fla., home. Steven Benson was taken into police custody on August 22, 1985, after being accused of blowing up his family in a Chevy Suburban in the driveway of their Naples, Fla., home on July 9 of the same year. Carol Kendall was born on 07/08/1944 and is 78 years old. He was my main suspicion before I got out of the house with him.. Joyce Quinn, Margaret Benson's quiet and polite young secretary who'd lasted but three months in the job before realizing there had to be saner employment, testified that Margaret "paid for everything for Scott" -- his cars (among them two Lotuses, a sports car that costs $45,000 to $50,000) his van, his Cigarette speedboat, his apartment and furniture, repairs, his tennis lessons, his clothes and his gas credit cards. As trial testimony brought out, Steven had started yet another company, Meridian Marketing, which was located about 30 miles away in Fort Myers, where Steven had just bought a new (and very large) house. It r Benson was sentenced to life in prison. The bombing took place July 9, 1985 in the Quail Creek community. After Harry Hitchcock had health problems in the late 1950s, Edward ran the company for him. [12], Dominick Dunne's investigative crime show Dominick Dunne's Power, Privilege, and Justice devoted an hour for the case of Steven Benson. On July 11, two days after Margaret and Scott Benson were killed, Wayne Kerr, the lawyer from Philadelphia, filed a 1983 will that named him executor of the estate. I dont think he believed he belonged in there.. Steven Wayne Benson was an American double murderer of his mother, tobacco heiress Margaret Benson, and his brother, tennis player Scott Benson. She, of course, was referring to Margaret. Moments later, a second bomb, this one planted in the rear of the vehicle, exploded. Steven said he was sorry but that he already had a business meeting. Also Read : . And Steven usually drove when we were together. 3600 New York Avenue NE, Washington, DC 20002, Biden migrant surge sets all-time record for most arrests at southern border, With its social media biz under siege, Facebook looks to build a new metaverse empire, Youngkin goes solo, McAuliffe leans on surrogates in home stretch of Va. governors race. The Lancaster tobacco heir was convicted after a monthlong trial that was carried on Florida television, drew national headlines and spurred books and intense media coverage both here and in Florida. Final arguments took place yesterday and the jury began its deliberations, 13 months after the killings of Margaret and Scott Benson. Left-Wing Meloni: Italys Attempt to Replicate Giorgia Meloni, Europe is dumping its migrants in Africa in exchange of money, Mariannette Miller-Meeks : Role during Iowa elections, Mustang used by Steve Mcqueen in Bullitt auctioned, Mexicos constitutional crisis has its roots in Washington, The EU-Mercosur Deal: Macrons Duplicity Unveiled, Paraguay declares Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organisation. It was obvious he was spending his mothers money on himself and his family, Brock said. Steven Benson is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 2, and prosecutors have asked for a life sentence. People had suspicions as to why, after having two children of her own, all of a sudden Mrs. Benson adopts a third.. Best of 2022 Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Top 250 TV Shows Most Popular TV Shows Most Popular Video Games Most Popular Music Videos Most Popular Podcasts. Dysfunction, said Patty Bennett, a juror on the case, trying to describe the Benson family. Bar Number: 555258. He is also charged with the attempted murder of his sister, Carol Lynn. Investigators also found on Bensons pants a single particle of zinc, which they said fell off the pipe while he was making the bombs. It just never stopped, Cirace said. People are interested in that, and the way it was done every day, people dont blow up their mother and brother and sister in a prominent part of Naples., Young described Benson as calm, calculated, coldblooded., He thought he could get away with it, Young said. The Miami Herald gave the following account of a groundskeeper who worked on Margaret Benson's Pennsylvania estate: He recalled that one day in 1982 he looked down from his ladder to see Steven carrying three copper tubes with wires protruding from them. A jury convicted Steven Benson of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and arson of a dwelling. The motive was money. Carol Lynn Kendall, sister of Steven Benson, survived the car bomb that killed her son, Scott Benson, and mother, Margaret Benson, on July 9, 1985. That she is now horribly scarred is obvious; large red subdermal slashes streak her face. The chief prosecutor, Jerry Brock, argued she had made conflicting statements in earlier depositions. My memorys getting pretty hazy. An investigator said later they probably didnt have a chance to move.. ), After a brief rebuttal by the prosecution, Judge Hayes let the jury go. Carol Lynn Benson Kendall, 2719 Hollywood Blvd., Suite 164, Hollywood, disbarred effective immediately, following a Sept. 22 court order. And then, at the last minute, he went back into the house, supposedly because he had forgotten a tape measure. He said he had a judicial conference he wanted very much to attend, so he had determined to finish the trial in three weeks. Theyre all dead.. 20 years later, friends and family still try to make sense of Benson murders: 'It still seems unreal', By opting into newsletters you are agreeing to our. Please enable JavaScript to properly view our site. Carol Lynn Kendall testifies during the trial of her brother, Steven Benson, during his 1986 trial. They have never learned to live, really.. Benson never bothering to wash his mothers blood spatters from the side of his white van, which he had parked near the blown-apart Suburban, and which he was still driving on the day police showed up to arrest him for the killings, a month and a half later. He complimented the jury for its "staying power," but that didn't stop him from holding court all day Saturday, too. He was the last person to drive the SUV. Copyright 2023 The Washington Times, LLC Carol Lynn Kendall testifies during the trial of her brother, Steven Benson, during his 1986 trial. 'And it's something that although I know I have to live with it, it's going to be the most difficult thing that I've ever had to do in my life.'. Steven Benson's palm print was one of the major points in the prosecution's case against him, a case that ultimately convinced a jury to convict him of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and arson of a dwelling in the killing of his mother and nephew and injuring of his sister with car-bomb in front of their Naples, Fla., home. Margaret Benson adopted her grandson as her son, to cover up the fact that her daughter, a former beauty queen, became pregnant with a water skier from Cypress Gardens, said Cirace, now 64. He became known for writing grievances against both inmates and correctional officers, complaining about anything from the amount of sales tax charged at commissary to the Spanish programs playing in the television room. Janet Murphy, Steven Bensons maternal aunt, said no one in the family ever patched things up with him, and he has never as much as admitted to the crime. Also Read:Mustang used by Steve Mcqueen in Bullitt auctioned, Your email address will not be published. Then the witness surprised the judge by asking if he could make a "statement." The family and everybody just treated his grandmother as Scotts mother, the attorney said. Margaret's son, Steven Benson, was convicted of placing two pipe bombs inside the family's Suburban, which killed his mother and brother, and seriously injured his sister, Carol Benson Kendall. Steven's defense case, which lasted from Saturday, July 26, to last Monday, was marred by fights over the late introduction of witnesses (at one point Judge Hayes told the defense that such a practice was "just damn bush") and frequent bench conferences that resulted in the jury's being excused for the day. Prison life Benson is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 2, and was... 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