Prison release of Molly and Tom Martens delayed after miscalculation
Sarah Slater
A major mistake has been made by officials from the North Carolina Department of Corrections over the release of Molly and Tom Martens, who were convicted of killing Limerick father of two Jason Corbett at his home in the US in 2015.
The pair, who were sentenced for the manslaughter of Mr Corbett last month, were due to be released from prison, however, that will no longer go ahead after it was found there has been a mix-up regarding the prison release dates.
Molly Martens (40) and her father, Tom Martens (73), were sentenced to between seven and 30 months by Judge David Hall last month for the manslaughter of Mr Corbett (39) in 2015, taking into account the time they already spent in prison following a murder conviction in relation to Mr Corbett's death which was later overturned on appeal.
Their release has been postponed until next June due to the error.
The matter was confirmed by Detention Centre officials to North Carolina WXII12 News broadcast centre. According to the Davidson County Jail, the Department of Corrections “miscalculated” the Martens release dates.
Responding to the news, Mr Corbett’s daughter Sarah (17) tweeted: “The pain and confusion.”
Sarah's aunt, Marilyn Corbett, wrote on Facebook: “How on earth could this happen? Only a short time ago it was confirmed through the media that (the Martens) would be released, and now it was all a mistake.”
Mr Corbett was found dead in his home in North Carolina in the US on August 2nd, 2015.
The court previously heard that Mr Corbett, a business executive, had sustained extreme injuries, having been beaten with a brick and a baseball bat.
Tom and Molly Martens were convicted of second-degree murder of Mr Corbett having claimed they acted in self-defence.
However, their convictions were overturned on appeal when they had served three-and-a-half years of their 20 and 25-year sentences.
The pair faced a retrial, and opted to enter guilty pleas to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.
