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Dan Markel— Case Archive
personpersonRyan FitzpatrickRyan FitzpatrickWitness in the Magbanua retrial, Charlie Adelson trial, and Donna Adelson trial; friend of Charlie Adelson whose testimony on family attitude, cash practices, and post-arrest demeanor recurred across the case.← All People
Witness

Ryan Fitzpatrick

Courtroom still of Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Witness in the Magbanua retrial, Charlie Adelson trial, and Donna Adelson trial; friend of Charlie Adelson whose testimony on family attitude, cash practices, and post-arrest demeanor recurred across the case.

AppearedMagbanua RetrialCharlie AdelsonDonna Adelson
348 lines·11 proceedings·4 mentions·3 trials

About

Ryan Fitzpatrick was a former close friend and business associate of Charlie Adelson who testified from that relationship about Charlie's communications, cash practices, statements, and conduct as the investigation developed. He said Charlie communicated with him through WhatsApp, paid him in stapled $1,000 cash bundles, and stored similarly stapled bundles in a safe. He recounted a remark about getting away with murder by remaining quiet, said Charlie told him about a 2016 extortion attempt involving his mother, and described Charlie as increasingly nervous, agitated, or worried around Katherine Magbanua's arrest, a law-enforcement bump involving Donna Adelson, and later arrests. He also testified that Donna disliked Dan Markel and that the murder was generally not discussed during his friendship with Charlie. Cross-examination established that he lacked firsthand knowledge of the terms or payment for Magbanua's Lexus transfer and did not witness the reported confrontation with Sigfredo Garcia; it also examined his falling out, financial dispute, hostile messages, online posts, and alternative explanations for Charlie's behavior. Fitzpatrick later qualified his use of “guilty” as a retrospective conclusion.

Trial Record (11)

KMMagbanua RetrialMay 18, 2022 – May 27, 2022Called by defense

Called by the defense on Day 7, Ryan Fitzpatrick described his friendship and business relationship with Charles Adelson, including their communications, cash payments, and Adelson's behavior around Katherine Magbanua's arrest. Cross-examination established limits on Fitzpatrick's firsthand knowledge of the Lexus transfer, any payment, and a reported confrontation.

Day 7

DirectRyan Fitzpatrick - DirectRyan Fitzpatrick2highlights163lines spoken

Summary

Defense witness Ryan Fitzpatrick described his former friendship with Charles Adelson, stapled cash payments, and behavior he observed around Katherine's arrest.

Highlights (2)

Quote“Frantic behavior, nervousness, paranoia, restlessness.”— Ryan FitzpatrickFitzpatrick described the change he said he observed in Charles Adelson's behavior around Katherine's arrest.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
RedirectRyan Fitzpatrick - RedirectRyan FitzpatrickTara Kawass2highlights3lines spoken

Summary

Fitzpatrick said he hoped Charles Adelson would not use a trackable phone to plan a homicide.

Highlights (2)

testimony highlightOn redirect, defense counsel asked Fitzpatrick whether Charles Adelson would use a regular, trackable phone to plan a homicide; Fitzpatrick answered, “I hope not.”Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
Quote“I hope not.”— Ryan FitzpatrickFitzpatrick gave a qualified response when asked whether Charles Adelson would plan a homicide using a regular phone that could be tracked.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶

Day 8

CACharlie AdelsonOct 26, 2023 – Nov 6, 2023Called by prosecution

Testifying as Charlie Adelson's former close friend, Fitzpatrick described Adelson's cash-bundling practice, statements, and behavior after a 2016 arrest. Cross-examination addressed Fitzpatrick's limited knowledge, personal and financial conflict with Adelson, and recent online comments.

Day 2

DirectRyan Fitzpatrick - DirectRyan FitzpatrickGeorgia Cappleman7highlights67lines spoken

Summary

Former friend Ryan Fitzpatrick testified about Charlie Adelson's family relationships, cash handling, post-2016-arrest demeanor, and alleged disclosures, while acknowledging a later personal falling out and limits on his memory.

Highlights (7)

testimony highlightFitzpatrick recalled Charlie Adelson making a remark that a person could get away with murder by keeping quiet, and placed the remark after Dan Markel's murder.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
Quote“Charlie, as you've heard in testimony and depos, he made a lot of tasteless jokes. And he said something along the lines of you can get away with anything -- you can get away with murder if you keep your mouth shut.”— Ryan FitzpatrickFitzpatrick attributed a memorable post-murder remark to Charlie Adelson while qualifying it as one of his tasteless jokes.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
Show all 7 highlights
impeachmentAfter initially saying he could not recall whether Charlie told him about the bump, Fitzpatrick reviewed his prior deposition and said Charlie had told him about the 2016 extortion attempt involving his mother.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
Quote“If I said it there, then I said it there. It's been years so it's hard to recall.”— Ryan FitzpatrickFitzpatrick acknowledged limited present recall before reviewing his prior deposition.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
CrossRyan Fitzpatrick - CrossRyan FitzpatrickDan Rashbaum5highlights45lines spoken

Summary

Ryan Fitzpatrick acknowledged hostile messages and recent social-media posts about Charlie as the defense questioned his motives and whether public attention could explain the behavior he observed after Katie's arrest.

Highlights (5)

confrontationDefense questioned whether public coverage, an apparent-cause affidavit, the bump, and Katie's arrest could have contributed to the behavior Fitzpatrick observed from Charlie.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
impeachmentFitzpatrick denied stealing from Charlie but acknowledged a dismissed lawsuit, repayment demands, and messages in which he threatened to contact the FBI and called Charlie a murderer.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
Quote“That's speculation on your part. I have no idea. I didn't think about it, didn't lose any sleep over it.”— Ryan FitzpatrickFitzpatrick rejected defense counsel's suggestion about why Charlie's civil lawsuit was dismissed.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
impeachmentFitzpatrick acknowledged recent social-media posts about Charlie, including a wager referring to “life-plus,” while saying he was expressing his opinion rather than helping obtain a sentence.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶
Show all 5 highlights
Quote“I don't know that it suggested that I was helping do anything. I was just speaking my opinion, which that's free speech and that's what all the other idiots on that thing do as well so...”— Ryan FitzpatrickFitzpatrick characterized his online comments as opinion after the defense used them to challenge his claimed lack of personal stake.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶

Day 7

Day 8

DADonna AdelsonAug 22, 2025 – Sep 4, 2025Called by prosecution

Testifying on Day 3, Ryan Fitzpatrick described his friendship with Charlie Adelson, Donna Adelson's dislike of Dan Markel, Charlie's cash storage, and Charlie's reaction to law-enforcement activity.

Day 3