HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — After four years of advocating for Sabrina Hendley, the stand your ground case has been dropped in Hillsborough County, leaders from the nonprofit Hands Across the Bay announced.
"Thank you to everyone who has supported Sabrina through this very tough battle and all who attended court with us," nonprofit leaders wrote in a statement. "This is an amazing victory for her, her family, Hands Across the Bay and all women experiencing domestic violence."
Back in May of 2018, Hendley, then 39 years old, was charged with murder after she was accused of shooting and killing her husband – something her supporters say was done in self-defense.
Deputies said just after midnight one day, Hendley got into an argument with her husband Mark, who was 51. During the fight, her husband reportedly punched his father-in-law multiple times, causing cuts on his face.
Deputies said the husband went to his bedroom. Hendley followed him and demanded he apologize. She eventually ended up shooting him once in the upper body, deputies said.
He was taken to a hospital, where he died.
Fast forward four years later, the stand your ground case for Hendley has been dropped. Court documents obtained by 10 Tampa Bay confirm a notice of "nolle prosequi" was filed Thursday, meaning prosecutors are voluntarily not moving forward with the case.
Hands Across the Bay, in an email, said State Attorney Andrew Warren had reviewed the case and spoken with experts to "make sure that an innocent woman with no criminal history was sent to prison for life for defending her elderly father, her two children, neighbor and herself..."
"Our little charity Hands Across the Bay has had a monumental victory today that will make every victim of domestic violence whether they be a woman or a man a little bit safer and that women have the same basic human rights that men have to defend themselves against their abusers…," Julie Weintraub, founder of the nonprofit, wrote in a statement.
In Florida, the Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached at 1-800-500-1119 or via the relay at 711. Nationwide, the National Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached 24/7 at 1-800-799-7233. It also has a live chat function, which you can find on its website here.