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. 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. He just kept a straight face.. Before the day was over, according to newspaper accounts, Steven had asked for and received a loan of $20,000 from his grandfather. Apparently, the idea was to cut down on speeches to the jury, and to speed things along. And he put a lot of planning in it but never covered his tracks at all., Tom Schelling, whom the Benson family had on the payroll to do maintenance and construction around their many estates, said he has known Steven Benson since high school. 10-Year Discipline History: . Behind bars, Benson has worked in the laundry and on a painting detail. A lot. The judge made the sentences consecutive, in accordance with Bensons sisters wishes. Trending. The Trustees have not presented reasonable grounds for attributing the settlors scheme to their section of the trustee exercised on November 27, 1985, following the death of Ms. Benson. 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. He just looked at me. The Trustees set up a trust for Kendall, a trust for Stephen, and a share for Scott. (AP Photo) (Photo: Anonymous). It all came back to him.. The only survivor of the blast, Steven Benson's sister, Carol Lynn Benson Kendall, testifies about the explosion and injuries she sustained. [4] For his work, the man who once stood to gain millions received no compensation, prison officials said. It came to an average monthly payment of more than $10,000, or a grand total of "around a quarter of a million dollars.". Steven Benson turned gray behind bars and died, to little fanfare. The siblings did not return phone messages Friday. By the time the trial began, Steven Benson had been in jail for almost 11 months. File photo. The jury was left with one noticeable absence from the list of witnesses. I think it was the dumbest murder I ever solved that had been planned. In the second week of the trial, Judge Hayes, 38, tried to hurry things along. The motive was money. A maid testified that he was "the apple of his mother's eye." Even though he had a fancy car" -- the Lotus -- "he didn't like to drive. ", Once all was set, she testified, Steven handed Scott the keys, and then said he had forgotten something and headed back toward the house. Thats how Margaret died. I never saw him cry as much as he did with the Challenger. But that same day, local attorney Guion DeLoach showed up with a second and more recent will, one that Margaret Benson had him draw up and that she signed Jan. 29, 1985. Error! 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. Carol Lynn Benson Kendall Obituary - Death, Cause Of Death, Funeral: Friends and others affected mourn the death of Carol Lynn Benson Kendall, has suddenly passed away.click to read and leave tributes. Even though her grandfather and her aunt opposed Steven's release on bail, she apparently still fights the conclusion that Steven did it. It was full of surprises. Just follow the money, and you could see what he was doing.. Please enable JavaScript to properly view our site. He never looked at anybody, says Murphy, who sat right behind Benson during the trial. How it wasnt run correctly. Albert Gleason, a federal explosives expert, testifies about the pipe-bomb Steven Benson used to kill his family members on July 9, 1985, in front of their Naples, Fla., home. They had a heckuva fight out of it, he says. Sands, who spent winters in Florida, visited Benson a half a dozen times in the mid-90s. Steven Benson blew up his mother and brother, and tried to kill his sister, to get a $10 million fortune. And he is an arbitrator within the family when things go wrong., Steven started to cry. Carol Lynn Kendall testifies during the trial of her brother, Steven Benson, during his 1986 trial. Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. He stared at her and walked away, said Kendall, who is now 70 and living somewhere in Florida. Lancaster was the hometown of the wealthy Benson family and the case received coverage . But there were other debits. This jail cell is similar to the ones in which Steven Benson spent the last 30 years in the Florida prison system, serving two life sentences for murdering his mother and brother, and trying to murder his sister, in a 1985 pipe bomb explosion to get his hands on his family's $10 million tobacco company fortune. During a deposition taken by Bensons attorneys in Florida on Sept. 20, Mrs. Kendall, 40, said she was an unmarried teen-ager when she became pregnant, The Boston Herald reported today. Murphys father, Harry Hitchcock, was fine. The jury convicted Benson on the first vote, she said. To him, sadly, its not a shocker, the terrible things people do to each other, the terrible things they do for money. Shocked by the attack, she says that since then, her siblings have been completely uninterested in her physical and emotional well-being. She was not allowed to leave town, as there was the possibility that the state might put her back on the stand. When Benson refused to pay, Washington and another man, identified as Marvin Taylor, ambushed and shanked Benson. Through taxes, disbursements and attorneys fees, the estate has dwindled from $10 million to about $1.2 million, said Carl Westman, the estates attorney. Benson died earlier this month in a Florida prison, where he was serving two life sentences for the crimes. By July 8, the day before the bombing, Margaret had learned of Steven's new house in Fort Myers, according to testimony. Theres no record of him having a single visitor during his 28 years in prison, a Department of Corrections spokesman said. Florida authorities have charged Steven Benson, Mrs. Kendall's 34-year-old natural brother, with setting the blast outside . Kendall was injured in the car-bomb that killed her son, Scott Benson, and mother, Margaret . 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, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. His company prospered, and he became one of the best-liked civic and charitable figures in Lancaster, Pa., a lovely area surrounded by Amish farms. David Ahntholz/Staff (Photo: David Ahntholz .da-), Ajuror compares a police artist's sketch of the man who bought pipe at Hughes Supply to a mug shot of Steven Benson. Last Known Contact Information. He worked in the laundry. malevolent." Carol Lynn Benson Kendall was a former Miss Florida runner-up and was survived in a murder attempt by her brother Steven Wayne Benson in 1985. '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.'. Later he approved a partial distribution from Margaret Benson's estate. Carol Lynn Benson Kendall Death, Obituary pending- Carol Lynn Benson Kendall has reportedly passed away unexpectedly and suddenly. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. Carol Lynn Benson Kendall, Appellant/Petitioner, v. Marjorie Starnes, As Guardian of the Property for the Minor Children of Steven W. Benson, and Steven W. Benson, Appellees/Respondents. 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. The bombing took place July 9, 1985 in the Quail Creek community. ", Edward Benson died in 1980 at the age of 60, and his widow moved to Naples, Fla., a Gulf Coast enclave whose Chamber of Commerce boasts more millionaires per capita than any other U.S. city. Investigators also found on Bensons pants a single particle of zinc, which they said fell off the pipe while he was making the bombs. McDonnell closed with a string of witnesses, most of them prisoners, who testified as to Scott Benson's less than sterling character, arguing that this indicated Scott had been the target, and that Margaret and Carol Lynn were unlucky enough to be along for the ride. BOSTON -- Tobacco heiress Carol Lynn Benson Kendall said Wednesday she has no intention of cutting her brother's children out of the family fortune despite his conviction of murdering her mother and son. He was going to turn it into an apartment house. Benson was sentenced to life in prison. Margarets blood was still all over the side of his van. Carol Lynn Kendall testifies during the trial of her brother, Steven Benson, during his 1986 trial. It just never stopped, Cirace said. His second wife Debra was not in the courtroom, or even in Florida. Collier County's most notorious killer himself met with a violent end. Carol Lynn Kendall testifies during the trial of her brother, Steven Benson, during his 1986 trial. Please enable JavaScript to properly view our site. But Murphy will never forget how the deaths affected her father. Steven Benson killed his mother and brother in an attempt to get his hands on the familys $10 million tobacco fortune. 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. On Monday, the state produced a witness whose testimony left a strong impression on those spectators who had seen the trial from the beginning. The three children were to divide the estate equally. I just cant imagine. Also in the car were her two children, 21-year-old Scott, who died, and 41-year-old Carol Lynn, who was badly injured but survived. Debra divorced Steven shortly after his August 22, 1985, arrest. Margaret Benson eventually loaned her son the money but he never did anything with the building, Sands says. . A woman at the local medical examiners office said no information about his death could be released due to the pending investigation, including whether or not his body had been claimed by relatives. Scott ran with a rough crowd, and was known to get rough with both Margaret and Carol Lynn. FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) _ The estate of murdered tobacco heiress Margaret Benson should be shared equally by the children of the son who killed her and by her daughter, a judge has ruled. But the jury only wanted to have portions of Carol Lynn Benson Kendall's testimony read back. She was crying. Murphys nephew, Steven Benson, was the only one to escape the fiery blast that day. . . However, she continued to pamper him. 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. 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. And there was lots of squabbling over who got what. The star of the show by far was Carol Lynn Benson Kendall. (Admitted to practice: 2002) Further, Kendall shall pay restitution of $1,075 to one client. Steven was paid $244,974.39 so he could pay his legal fees. Success! he asked. I have a strong feeling Steven Benson also knew, Cirace said. A jury convicted him of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and arson of a dwelling in 1986, and he spent the rest of his life in jail. 22, 1985, arrest pay restitution of $ 1,075 to one client heckuva fight out it... 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved was to cut down on speeches to jury! 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