BUFFALO, N.Y. — Testimony wrapped up in the Adam Bennefield trial on Tuesday afternoon. He is accused of killing his estranged wife, Ke'Aira Hudson Bennefield, in front of their children in 2022.
Jurors watched two videos that Bennefield recorded himself just hours before he allegedly killed his wife.
Timestamped at 5:32 a.m. and 6:14 a.m. on Oct. 5, 2022, with location at Marigold Avenue in Buffalo, the video places Bennefield a block away from the crime scene just hours before his wife was killed.
These videos came from a recovered phone found in the gray Ford F-150 truck Bennefield was seen driving as he fled police from the crime scene.
In the two videos, nearly an hour long, Bennefield talked about problems with his marriage and the court system, while increasingly seeming angrier and more frustrated.
“I don’t want to go back to court,” he said in the video.
Police found a court appointment card in the truck dated Oct. 6 2022, the day after Ke’Aira was killed.
In the videos, Bennefield said his wife cheated on him shortly after their marriage. He also accused her of having an alcohol problem which led to her driving drunk and abusing him and the children. Bennefield admitted to hitting his wife after she cheated on him early in the marriage. He expressed anger about a Cheektowaga Court decision for serving him paperwork and not to his wife, Ke’Aira, and said she lied to the courts.
“How much can a person take,” he said, adding that they forced his hand. He accused her of being a “master manipulator.”
He also said Cheektowaga Courts did not sign a restraining order that he had presented for Ke’Aira and was upset he was not allowed to see his son or enter his house.
“Y’all gonna persecute someone and think they ain’t gonna defend themselves,” he said.
Bennefield continued to speak about money problems in the videos, saying he paid for the wedding, bills, and things for the children while she did not. He added that he was upset with his wife for partying, drinking, coming home late, and frequently cheating.
“Can’t expect no fallout,” he said.
In the video, he said he was “sitting here hating myself,” and that he was “beyond hurt.”
He added that people told him he should have walked away. Bennefield said in the video he did not want to because he did not want to leave his house, his kids and have his wife drive his cars.
At the end of the video, Bennefield said it “doesn’t matter anymore.”
Four people testified today for the prosecution. While one of the detectives on the stand was reviewing photos of the crime scene, two members of Ke’Aira’s family walked out of the courtroom and one juror was visibly disturbed.
Police found the gray Ford F-150 truck underneath a pedestrian bridge near 618 Humbolt Parkway that Bennefield allegedly used to flee the crime scene. Nearby, they also found a 12-gauge shotgun with an empty chamber.
At the scene of the crime, police found fired shotgun shells. In the medical examiner’s testimony, she said the cause of Ke'Aira's death was from a shotgun wound to the head.
One of the detectives added that the DNA on the shotgun was not tested. It was a line of questions from the defense asking about the lack of DNA testing on the weapon. Detectives and prosecution said it was because in certain cases when there is a lot of other evidence, DNA does not need to be tested.
After the prosecution called all their witnesses, the defense argued for dismissal, citing that the DNA was not tested and not enough witnesses identified Bennefield.
The prosecution argued that Ke’Aira’s daughter’s testimony was enough for identification and the judge agreed, denying the dismissal.
The defense did not call any witnesses to the stand.
In the charging conference, the defense asked for the consideration of a first-degree manslaughter charge, saying that Bennefield did not intend to kill Ke’Aira. The prosecution disagreed, saying the shot to the head proved otherwise.
The judge cited his own experience with shotguns in denying the manslaughter charge. He said the actions of pumping a shotgun more than once showed that Bennefield intended to do more than injure Ke’Aira.
The closing statements are scheduled for Nov. 20.