Dan Markel

Daniel Eric Markel (October 9, 1972 – July 19, 2014) was a Canadian-born attorney and law professor who wrote various works on retribution in criminal law and sentencing with a focus on the role of punishment in the criminal justice system. He earned a J.D. degree from Harvard University in 2001, and after working as a law clerk to a federal judge and as an associate at a law firm, joined the faculty of Florida State University in 2005.

In 2014, Markel was killed in Tallahassee, Florida, in a murder-for-hire motivated by child custody issues following Markel's divorce from Wendi Adelson, a clinical law professor and child advocate also employed at Florida State University at the time.

As of September 2025, five individuals have been convicted in the case. Donna Adelson, Wendi Adelson's mother and Markel's former mother-in-law, was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and solicitation of murder in September 2025. Charlie Adelson, Donna Adelson's son and Wendi Adelson's brother, as well as Markel's former brother-in-law, was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and solicitation of murder, and sentenced to life in prison plus an additional 30 years each for the conspiracy and solicitation convictions. Sigfredo Garcia was found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, and sentenced to life in prison. After a mistrial in her original trial, Katherine Magbanua was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and solicitation of murder in a retrial and sentenced to life in prison plus two consecutive 30-year sentences. Luis Rivera pled guilty to second-degree murder, and was sentenced to 19 years in prison. Neither Markel's ex-wife Wendi Adelson nor Wendi Adelson's father (and Markel's former father-in-law) Harvey Adelson have been charged, but prosecutors have named both as "unindicted co-conspirator" in the killing.