Bid to free convicted killer on Covid-19 grounds a 'desperate stunt', says brother of Jason Corbett

Attempts by American man, Tom Martens, who was convicted of murdering his son-in-law, Jason Corbett, to be freed from prison due to the coronavirus are nothing short of a “desperate stunt”, a family member claims.
Bid to free convicted killer on Covid-19 grounds a 'desperate stunt', says brother of Jason Corbett

Attempts by American man, Tom Martens, who was convicted of murdering his son-in-law, Jason Corbett, to be freed from prison due to the coronavirus are nothing short of a “desperate stunt”, a family member claims.

Jason Corbett (aged 39), a Limerick business executive died from head injuries after a sustained assault with a brick and a baseball bat at his family home in the town of Wallburg on August 2, 2015.

Molly Martens Corbett, aged 36, and her father Tom, aged 70, a retired FBI agent with 30 years experience, were convicted of Mr Corbett’s death by a US court in August 2017.

The Martens pair pleaded not guilty to the charges and claimed self-defence was the reason behind their deadly actions. Both are serving 20- to 25-year jail terms in high security prisons in the US.

Michael Corbett, who is an older brother of Jason’s and extremely private slammed attempts by Martens’ lawyers to free him.

US-based defence lawyer David Freedman said that he has filed a motion for his client's release with prison authorities in North Carolina, given Martens’ age and the threat the virus poses to him due to him being 70.

It is hoped he will be released on bond. The court hearing is expected to take place in the coming days.

Mr Corbett said: “(This) is another desperate stunt, using the coronavirus pandemic to try to get Thomas Martens, a convicted murderer, out of prison.

People are dying worldwide because of it and his legal representatives are trying to use it to benefit their client.

“Let us hope the US courts system view this motion as another desperate act. It is like an never ending nightmare.”

A year-long review by the Court of Appeal granted a re-trial for the father and daughter last month.

Several days later, a formal notice was issued by North Carolina Supreme Court clerk Amy Funderburk, confirming that a stay has been granted on a Court of Appeal order.

The North Carolina Attorney General Joshua H Stein, filed a motion to the Supreme Court of North Carolina on the Court of Appeal's decision to grant a re-trial on the pair’s murder conviction.

Mr Stein’s office said it was continuing to review the court of appeal decision in order to determine its next steps.

File photo of Molly Martens and Tom Martens
File photo of Molly Martens and Tom Martens

Lawyers for the father and daughter said they did not get a fair trial, held in July and August 2017, and that the trial judge had excluded critical evidence in their case.

In their appeal, lawyers for Molly and Thomas Martens argued that the judge in the case had excluded key evidence that would have corroborated their client’s claims.

This included information which they said might have explained Thomas Martens’ state of mind on the night of the murder. They argued that statements Mr Corbett’s children had given to social workers should have been allowed as evidence.

The three judges, In the Court of Appeal ruling, described its ruling as “deceptively simple”, boiling down to whether the defendants lawfully used deadly force to defend themselves and each other during the tragic altercation with Mr Corbett.

An hour-long CBS documentary, aired last April in the US, on Mr Corbett’s killing entitled, In the Name of Jason, revealed that key evidence was allegedly not put before the jury which convicted them resulting in the potential for a new murder trial.

Ms Martens was Mr Corbett’s second wife and the couple met when the American woman worked as a nanny in his Co. Limerick home. Mr Corbett’s first wife Mags Fitzpatrick died of an asthma attack in 2006.

When Sarah was four-years-old she moved to the US with her father Jason and brother Jack, then six-years-old, to begin a new life. They now live in Limerick with their aunt and uncle, Tracey and David Lynch.

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