It r Another facet of the prosecutor's argument was that Steven had been very specific about where each one of the family's members was to sit in the wagon -- and then, just before the first blast, he said he had forgotten a tape measure and headed back to the house. For years, she had paid for the lessons and the coaches and the trips, not to mention his 16 tennis racquets. And she also contradicted the wake testimony regarding bombs. An investigator said later they probably didnt have a chance to move.. The chief prosecutor, Jerry Brock, argued she had made conflicting statements in earlier depositions. Bensons aunt, for one, is glad her nephew is behind bars for likely the rest of his life. It seemed like a dumb thing." Steven Wayne Benson was an American double murderer of his mother, tobacco heiress Margaret Benson, and his brother, tennis player Scott Benson. He cried so much, she says. He never looked at anybody, says Murphy, who sat right behind Benson during the trial. As the trial date neared (there were several postponements before it finally began July 14) it became obvious that the large amounts of money involved meant that there would be a lot of lawyers on both sides of the courtroom trial. But the jury only wanted to have portions of Carol Lynn Benson Kendall's testimony read back. Her father, she says, was broken up by the entire affair. 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. Its been decades since his trial attracted attention, though TV specials still pop up on cable channels from time to time. Bar Number: 555258. Retired U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms agent Frank Kendall -- no relation to Carol Lynn -- testified that the palm print Steven Benson voluntarily gave the police in the summer of 1985 and the palm print on the pipe invoice were "made by the same person." That she was once a beauty contest winner is easy to see. The jury convicted Benson on the first vote, she said. Before the day was over, according to newspaper accounts, Steven had asked for and received a loan of $20,000 from his grandfather. I still get recognized, said Michael McDonnell, Bensons defense attorney, who at 74 still practices in Naples and Fort Myers. Even though he had a fancy car" -- the Lotus -- "he didn't like to drive. 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. When he returned, they said, he prepared to join his family to look at a piece of land his mother had bought. The Defense. But there is no doubt that he had a rough crowd of friends -- the defense called several occupants of the Naples jail to testify about Scott and his various habits, in the hope that this possible alternative theory would raise a reasonable doubt as to whether Steven is guilty. Distraught over the bombing and what she says is her brother's complete lack of interest in her physical and emotional condition since then (she testified he has never contacted her in all that time, not even to inquire about her health), she is occupied with trying to hold herself together emotionally. Steven Benson, convicted in 1986 of murdering his mother and adopted brother, died in July at Taylor Correctional Institution in northern Florida. Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. . Required fields are marked *. My mother and I were very, very close and we didn't have anybody else except each other because Scott went his own way, and Steven . In 1983, a fight with Margaret over the behavior of his bouvier des Flanders guard dog -- she'd let it in the house and it had wet on the expensive white carpet -- turned violent. Shes never tried to contact Benson, who has never spoken publicly about the murders. Its like the story that keeps on giving. I think it was just pure greed for money, Murphy said. He spent a lot of money and never did anything with it. Lets go with disastrous hate. Patty Bennett was a nervous mother of two boys sitting in a jury box when the defense gave its opening statement about Steven Benson. I guess he didnt want him to go to hell.. Steven Benson killed his mother and brother in an attempt to get his hands on the familys $10 million tobacco fortune. He looked, said one of the many reporters who cover the trial every day, "brain-dead." The Trustees set up a trust for Kendall, a trust for Stephen, and a share for Scott. Harold Young, the lead Collier County sheriff's detective who pegged Benson as his primary suspect the day of the killings, said he is more surprised by the length of the investigation than the way Benson died. We learned about the passing of Carol Lynn Benson Kendall on May 23, 2022. The star of the show by far was Carol Lynn Benson Kendall. ", After almost four hours of final argument, and another hour of his carefully read instructions, Judge Hayes gave the case to the jury at 2:06 yesterday afternoon. A jury convicted Steven Benson of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and arson of a dwelling. Electronics. Even though her grandfather and her aunt opposed Steven's release on bail, she apparently still fights the conclusion that Steven did it. The Fallout, At the funeral of Margaret and Scott Benson, Steven sat between his wife Debra and his grandfather, Harry Hitchcock. . Prosecutors argued that Steven had engineered the whole idea of the early-morning trip to view the huge -- 17,000-square-foot -- residence his mother was building nearby in the same exclusive subdivision. The bills were sent to and paid for by Margaret. In a rare moment of emotion during his trial, Steven Benson cries in the Florida courtroom where a jury convicted him in 1986 of blowing up his family in a Chevy Suburban in the driveway of their Naples, Fla., home on July 9, 1985. Steven Benson in the Florida courtroom where a jury convicted him in 1986 of blowing up his family in a Chevy Suburban in the driveway of their Naples, Fla., home on July 9, 1985. ", The jowly and bespectacled witness testified that Steven's company books were a mess, with checkbook entries missing and no balance carried forward. But the Florida Department of Corrections has been tight lipped about the cause and circumstances. The murder of Margaret and Scott Benson in 1985 drew national crime coverage never seen before and rarely since to Naples. Most recently, he was assigned as a houseman, performing maintenance and cleaning duties. . My relationship with Tracy was always a very turbulent one. Lending her emotional support was her grandfather, Harry Hitchcock, who had made a dramatic appearance in the courtroom at 8:25 a.m. and stayed the entire day. Her niece, Kendall, also has stayed out of the limelight. Nervously at first, but then more calmly, she testified in response to the prosecutor's questions. No mental problems, he was just evil., The case garnered national attention, and four authors later wrote books about it. Last Known Contact Information. In July 1985, Margaret, 63, her 41-year-old daughter, Carolyn Benson Kendall, her 33-year-old son Steven Benson, and her 21-year-old adopted son, Scott Benson, all got into a vehicle to go check out a plot of land in the city, where Margaret was planning to build another home for the family. Bennett heard how the bombs were assembled, with nails and tacks put inside them so they would do the most damage. Florida authorities have charged Steven Benson, Mrs. Kendall's 34-year-old natural brother, with setting the blast outside . Nor was he surprised when prosecutors said Benson had murdered his mother and sister to get at the familys fortune. But Kendall, who was injured. Cirace said Scott was born in 1965 in a Baltimore hospital and later adopted by Mrs. Kendalls mother, Margaret Benson of Pennsylvania, heiress to the Lancaster Leaf Tobacco Co. fortune. US fails miserably against Russia at the crucial UN Vote. . Success! He was sobbing.. A juror in the Steven Benson case compares an artist's sketch of the suspect who purchased materials to create the bomb with a mug shot of Benson. Steven Benson denied all requests for media interviews. The jury was split on the death penalty, and so gave him life in prison. She wanted an accounting and, if it had to be, a confrontation with Steven. The blast blew apart the Benson familys Chevrolet Suburban sometime between 9:17 and 9:20 a.m. on July 9, 1985, in the driveway of Margaret Bensons home, just off a golf course in an exclusive Naples, Fla., community. He just kept a straight face.. Mrs. Benson was 63 when she died in the blast. Also Read:Mustang used by Steve Mcqueen in Bullitt auctioned, Your email address will not be published. She said, I want to know where all the money went. She wanted to see the books. ", She said that Steven had called her the night before the bombing to make sure that both she and Scott would be coming along in the morning when he planned to stake the dimensions of his mother's new lot. He said, Thats how Margaret died. On the morning of the blast, prosecutors said, Benson drove the vehicle shortly before the explosion, allegedly to get doughnuts at a nearby convenience store. He wanted his own way and he was going to get it one way or another, he says. I suppose I have a strong sex desire, and Tracy's voluptuous figure, plus her vast sexual knowledge, I think from the beginning just overwhelmed me. Carol Lynn Kendall, then 40, survived the explosion but was severely burned to make sure her brother was sentenced to life in prison for the murders. How do we fathom in our heads that this boy plotted and schemed, and told them where to sit so he could do the most damage to the ones he hated the most?. I know it happened to me and my family, she says, but it seems so surreal.. Moments later, a second bomb, this one planted in the rear of the vehicle, exploded. Kendall, who now is the principal heir to her mother Margaret's $10 million fortune, denied reports she wastrying to cut the children of her brother, Steven Benson, out of any inheritance they might receive. In July 1985, 63-year-old Margaret and her 41-year-old daughter Caroline Benson Kendall, 33-year-old son Steven Benson and 21-year-old adopted son Scott Benson together Get in the car and leave to see a piece of land in the city, where Margaret plans to build another home for her family. He. Quinn, left-center, was watching the production with friend Kathleen Garvey, left, and daughter Debbie Quinn, right, as the crew worked on a production for Court TV about the 1985 murders of tobacco heiress Margaret Benson and her son Scott. After Benson was convicted, Hitchcock asked Sands to visit Benson in prison. Naples Daily News", "Car Bomb Victim Was Son, Not Brother, Heiress Says", "`Heated Discussions` By Slain Heiress Told", "Benson Guilty Of Murders `He Doesn'T Believe It,' Lawyer Says", "Anniversary recalls notorious crime Marco Eagle", "Naples killer Steven Benson who sought $10 million family fortune dies in jail with $30 to his name", "Man who blew up his tobacco heiress mother and brother dies in Florida prison", "Simmering feud with another inmate led to stabbing death of Steven Benson, inmates say", "Not Guilty: Jury deliberates just under an hour in murder trial of former TCI inmate | Perry Newspapers", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Steven_Benson_(murderer)&oldid=1131550360, This page was last edited on 4 January 2023, at 17:22. Carol Lynn Kendall unsuccessfully ran for a Naples City Council seat while living in Port . She suffered first-degree burns on her face and hands in the explosion and is still undergoing extensive reconstructive surgery. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. On Aug. 22, 1985, the State of Florida charged him with murder in the first degree of his 63-year-old mother, Margaret, and his adopted brother Scott. He was stabbed in the neck in 1991 by a prisoner who was later sent to a mental hospital. [6][7] Over the course of his sentence, Benson was transferred to various prisons because of constant threats and abuse from other inmates. 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.". Only Carol Lynn Benson survived in this tragic blast. He had been driving it all that time, he said. Copyright 2023 The Washington Times, LLC. I couldnt get through to him spiritually., Im no psychologist, Sands adds, but he lives in denial. Trending. Many members of the family have disappeared from public view in the past 20 years. Murphys father, Harry Hitchcock, was fine. He thought he was better than everybody else.. Prosecutors said it showed that while Carol Lynn owed her mother $118,560.33, Steven's IOU was $268,163.89. Steven Benson is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 2, and prosecutors have asked for a life sentence. Benson died earlier this month in a Florida prison, where he was serving two life sentences for the crimes. 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. 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. Scott had canisters of nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, to which he was addicted, delivered to the house on a monthly basis, defense witnesses said. Benson was sentenced to life in prison. Carol Kendall was born on 07/08/1944 and is 78 years old. Margaret Benson and her adopted son, Scott, were killed in the 1985 blast at their Naples home. To him, sadly, its not a shocker, the terrible things people do to each other, the terrible things they do for money. Release Calendar Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. He said Steven was laughing. The only survivor of the blast, Steven Benson's sister, Carol Lynn Benson Kendall, testifies about the explosion and injuries she sustained. Murphy s nephew, Steven Benson, was the only one to. Young had several reasons to suspect Benson. They have never learned to live, really.. He was 63, the same age his mother was when he killed her. 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. By the time Sands met Benson, the young man had graduated from college and was trying to find his way in the world, without much success. He had cautioned his new employes, according to testimony, not to let anyone in the offices of the Naples-based companies know the name of the company or what they did. Dad was very religious, she said. Indeed, Margaret Benson did change her will, but in a terribly ironic touch, the only change was to cut out Wayne Kerr as executor. [9][10] Benson was in a long running feud with Cordell Washington, another inmate at the facility. He didnt say anything after prison. 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. By the time the trial began, Steven Benson had been in jail for almost 11 months. Office: 954-789-0834. But that changed over the next three weeks, as witness after witness took the stand. If they had objections they were to say, quietly, "May we approach the bench?" That seemed more important to him than his family lying all over the golf course.. That she is now horribly scarred is obvious; large red subdermal slashes streak her face. There was none. Attorneys, an investigator and a juror have never forgotten what Steven Benson did, and how it affected their lives in the years since he was convicted of killing his family in Naples, Florida. She hardly looked at her brother, but when she testified about Scott Benson, she called him "my son. I knew it was no accident, said Young, now 75, of Naples. Apparently, the idea was to cut down on speeches to the jury, and to speed things along. The bombing took place July 9, 1985 in the Quail Creek community. She thought he had been embezzling family funds and had called her attorney to check into it. Carol Lynn Kendall testifies during the trial of her brother, Steven Benson, during his 1986 trial. Toxicology tests showed no drugs in Benson's system, the report states. Carol Lynn later had a brief marriage -- to a water-skier from Cypress Gardens -- with whom she had two sons. Simpson trial before the O.J. Eventually the second will was ruled valid, but before that happened, Steve Benson was arrested. Click here to learn more about the role the Lancaster County Local Journalism Fund plays in Lancaster County and to make a tax-deductible donation. Murphys daughter, Brenda, was there that day. Also Read : . Carol Lynn Benson Kendall is 42 years old. The mangled Benson family Chevy Suburban that Steven Benson exploded with a pipe-bomb in front of his family's Naples, Fla., home, killing his mother and nephew and injuring of his sister. It just never stopped, Cirace 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.". And trying to come to grips with the loss of her mother, with whom she had been close, at least from time to time, has been hard. He parked it and positioned his family in it. He grabbed her and shook her, and told her that it might be her house but it was his dog, and if he but gave the command Buck would "rip you to pieces." Scott ran with a rough crowd, and was known to get rough with both Margaret and Carol Lynn. After nearly three decades behind bars, Benson died July 3 at 63, the same age his mother, Margaret Hitchcock Benson, was when she was killed by a pipe bomb he planted in her Chevrolet Suburban in the familys North Naples driveway in 1985. Nobody else had time to put a bomb in there, Young said. Other testimony revealed another regular expenditure. Bensons grandfather, the family patriarch and the Lancaster Leaf Tobacco magnate, the late Harry Hitchcock, was a congenial-looking, white-haired Christian businessman known for his tulip gardens in School Lane Hills. 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. I heard a lot of cursing and swearing.. When I see that, I pity people like that. After his initial outburst, Benson became stoic and unemotional as the evidence was presented against him. Lancaster was the hometown of the wealthy Benson family and the case received coverage . Benson calmly talking on the phone about his burglar alarm companys profits when investigators arrived at the home where the shattered bodies of his mother, Margaret, 63, and his brother, Scott, 21, still lay outside on the driveway. Jul 23, 2015. Defense lawyer Mike McDonnell, who represented Benson along with attorney Jerry Berry, said it was one of the first trials to have televised gavel-to-gavel coverage.. An email has been sent with a link to confirm list signup. Shortly before his death in 1990, Harry Hitchcock the owner of Lancaster Leaf Tobacco Co. asked a longtime family employee, gardener Amos Sands, to visit his grandson in prison on his behalf. Hed claimed he had no money to pay his attorneys, so he claimed indigency -- and Judge Hayes approved the claim. Support local journalism. Just sort of odd, very different.. In the second half of 2015, there were close to 200 inmate deaths in Florida's prisons. On the morning of the explosion, the entire family agreed to inspect the land at Stevens suggestion. She is shown here in a . "Malevolent" is what the prosecutors for the state call 35-year-old Steven Benson. Scott was an aspiring tennis professional, but apparently the aspirations were Margaret's rather than his. Benson, then 33, was running out of it and wanted to inherit his mother's. 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. Bensons wife never attended the trial. LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) - Heres what has stuck with them for 30 years, since the day that Steven Benson blew up his family in a Chevy Suburban in the driveway of their Florida home, in a greedy attempt to inherit a $10 million Lancaster tobacco company fortune: . Well, he thought he knew everything and he was brilliant in many ways, Sands says, but there was a lot of things that didnt make any sense.. Please enable JavaScript to properly view our site. Except for that last-minute surprise appearance, Carol Lynn Benson Kendall had spent the day out of sight, with her lawyer and the lawyer for her mother's estate. Murphy declined to say where she now is living and says she does not see her regularly. 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