After nearly two years of on-and-off courtroom proceedings, a former yoga studio owner on Feb. 1 was acquitted of the murder of her twin sister.
After a four-day bench trial, Alexandria Duval, 39, was found not guilty of the second-degree murder of her twin and business partner Anastasia. Duval, according to a report by ABC News.
Duval was originally charged in her sister's death in June 2016, a month after she drove their Ford Explorer off a 200-foot cliffside in Maui, Hawaii, injuring Duval and killing Anastasia. The sisters allegedly were seen arguing prior to the crash, and the SUV's air-bag control module indicated the brakes were not applied immediately before the crash, according to reports by KHON2 and KNHL, respectively.
The sisters (formerly known as Alison and Ann Dadow) ran Twin Power yoga studios in Palm Beach County, Florida, from 2008 to 2014. They then changed their names, filed for bankruptcy and opened a yoga studio in Park City, Utah, before moving to Maui in 2015, where they intended to open another studio.
"I'm disappointed," Maui County Prosecuting Attorney J.D. Kim said after the verdict, according to ABC News. "The facts clearly show it was at least reckless behavior."
Duval reportedly exited the courtroom without commenting.
"It's been an extremely emotional ordeal for her," Duval's defense attorney, Birney Bervar, said after the verdict, according to ABC News. "You can't imagine losing your twin sister in that kind of catastrophic, tragic accident, then being charged with causing the death of your sister, which she didn't. She's extremely relieved."
An officer responding to the May 2016 crash scene, as well as Anastasia's boyfriend, Federico Bailey, both suggested Duval showed a "lack of emotion" following her sister's death, according to the ABC News report.
After she was initially charged in June 2016, Duval was released by district judge Blaine Kobayashi after he determined prosecutors did not have enough evidence to support the charge
With an arrest warrant in hand, New York State Police apprehended Duval at her Albany, New York, home in November 2016 on renewed charges. She initially fled but was captured and transported to a New York jail, before being extradited back to Hawaii.