Witness

Stephen Webster

Florida attorney who represented Dan Markel in post-divorce custody proceedings and was concurrently serving as Charlie Adelson's divorce lawyer, placing him in phone contact with both men on the morning of the murder.

Appeared Charlie Adelson

Mentioned Donna Adelson

59 lines · 2 appearances · 1 mention · 2 trials

About

Webster's dual concurrent representation — Markel in custody litigation and Charlie Adelson in divorce proceedings — makes him a structurally notable figure in the archive record: phone records establish a shared professional contact connecting the victim and a principal defendant on the morning of the murder, a link that neither trial developed into a contested issue but that the archive preserves as a cross-trial evidentiary thread.

Across Trials

Webster's role shifted substantially across the two trials. In the Rashbaum prosecution he was a sworn prosecution witness whose testimony directly addressed the trajectory of Markel's custody case, the implausibility of a settlement or relocation theory, and Markel's documented state of mind in the final day before the murder; his qualifications and courtroom experience were challenged on cross-examination, and he conceded that his primary practice was criminal defense and that he had never appeared in court with Markel before the murder occurred. In the Charlie Adelson prosecution Webster was not called as a witness and did not testify; his relevance was confined to phone-record evidence placing him as a shared professional contact of both the victim and the defendant on the morning of the killing. The fact that he was simultaneously representing Markel and Charlie in separate proceedings was not developed as a contested issue in either trial but acquires structural significance in the archive record as the clearest documentary link connecting the two men through a common attorney on the day of the murder.

Trial Record (3)

CA Charlie Adelson Oct 26, 2023 – Nov 6, 2023

Trial Summary

Florida attorney who represented Dan Markel in post-divorce custody proceedings from May 2014 through Markel's murder, called by the prosecution to establish that the custody dispute was actively litigated and to rebut defense theories about the possibility of a settlement or relocation deal.

Appearances (2)

Direct

Stephen Webster - Direct

Day 2 Cross

Stephen Webster - Cross

Day 2

DA Donna Adelson Aug 22, 2025 – Sep 4, 2025

Trial Summary

Named in trial testimony as the divorce attorney representing Charlie Adelson, Webster appeared in phone records and testimony as a contact Dan Markel was attempting to reach on the morning of the murder.

Mentioned (1)

Direct

Christopher Corbitt - Direct (Continued)

Day 4