'The Martens have made me an orphan': Molly and Tom Martens returned to jail in Jason Corbett case
Molly and Tom Martens left court after a Judge David Hall ordered they be returned to prison for the voluntary manslaughter of Jason Corbett. Pictures: Jerry Wolford
Molly Martens and her father Tom were handcuffed and sent back to jail for the manslaughter of Jason Corbett yesterday at a North Carolina court after Ms Martens was branded a “monster” by one of her former stepchildren.
The father and daughter were jailed for a minimum of seven months and a maximum of two years by Judge David Hall who presided over their hearing for seven days.
There were emotional scenes at Davidson County Court in Lexington North Carolina when the sentence was handed down.
The pair have already served 44 months in jail after being convicted of second-degree murder in 2017 but struck a plea deal last week for voluntary manslaughter.
Speaking at the sentencing hearing, Judge David Hall told the sheriff that the Martens were “in your custody” before they were handcuffed and led away to the county jail at the back of the courthouse.
The family of Jason Corbett gave powerful victim impact statements in the courtroom, his children Jack, 19, and Sarah, 17, read theirs in court to the judge, as did their aunt Tracey Corbett-Lynch who has custody of them since her brother’s death.
Four other impact statements were read out by the state’s legal team.
Molly Martens, 40, who was seated with her counsel could be heard crying when Jack Corbett described her as a “monster”.
He told Judge Hall he suffered from panic attacks and fear since his father died and said Molly Martens taught him to “lie and manipulate in every way”.
He said he was “scarred” by the death of his father and said that he will never “fully heal from the trauma” he has endured.
Speaking directly to the judge, he asked him to “hear me” when I say, “Your honour, don’t be fooled by this mask of civility of Molly Martens. There is a monster lurking underneath the exterior.
“She systemically broke me down and drip-fed me untruths. I want to be clear; I had never witnessed my dad hit Molly Martens, ever.
Both he and his sister sobbed as they pleaded with the judge to impose “the maximum sentence” on their father’s killers.
Sarah Corbett was the last to give her statement and said she was “traumatised” over her father’s death and having to “leave my home, my friends, and my country” after his death.
She told the judge her life “is filled with anniversaries of deaths” and that the “Martens have made me an orphan”.
Molly Martens lay across the table she was seated at with her head faced down throughout all of Sarah’s evidence.
“I never once said I don’t love Molly Martens,” said the teenager. “I am saying now, I do not love Molly Martens; she is not my mother”.
The children who gave evidence to social workers at the Dragonfly House four days after their father’s death said they were “coached to lie” by Molly Martens.
They both told the judge they feel “guilty” for “lying to help them stay out of jail”.
“What I said is what I was instructed to say, she taught me how to lie and to shoplift,” said Sarah Corbett.
However, Judge David Hall said several times that the children were “completely blameless”.
When handing down his sentence he said there were holes in the Martens evidence and could not understand why Tom Martens “with all his training in law enforcement” did not call for backup.
Molly Martens was first to be sentenced, she stood up before Judge Hall who returned her to jail.
Judge Hall ordered a full psychiatric assessment of Ms Martens who was to be placed on suicide precaution before adding that he noted “the pain she has expressed” during the trial.
He told Mr Martens he had a “lot of respect” for him before sending him back to jail.
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