THE harsh reality of prison life has started to hit home for convicted killer Molly Martens Corbett.
Last month Martens Corbett (33) and her 67-year-old father, retired FBI agent Tom were convicted of the second-degree murder of Limerick father-of-two Jason Corbett at his North Carolina home in August 2015.
This week Molly’s brother Connor Martens posted on Facebook about the “right to a fair trial” and the conditions experienced by his sister at North Carolina Correctional Facility since her incarceration for being convicted of second-degree murder.
“Upon entering prison on August 9, she was not given shower shoes or a tooth brush for the first nine days. This prevented her from showering and obviously brushing her teeth,” he claimed.
“There is no air conditioning. Over 15 people have passed out in her short time there. There are no activities. On rare occasions, she gets to go outside only to be reprimanded for walking too fast in her attempt to get exercise. Her hair has been dyed and cut against her will stripping her of any external dignity she may have had left.”
Mr Martens then went on to lambast the American judicial system, which put his sister and father behind bars for the next 20 to 25 years after being found guilty by a jury of nine women and three men following a month-long trial in Davidson Superior Court, North Carolina.
Martens Corbett and her father were convicted for bludgeoning Janesboro native Jason Corbett with a brick and aluminum baseball bat in the bedroom of his luxury Panther Creek Court home in the early hours of August 2, 2015.
However, Molly Martens’ brother Connor this week made reference to “the ineptitude of a rural county investigation” and “the prosecution preventing evidence from being presented”.
“It isn’t even about whether they’re guilty or innocent. At this point, it is about every American and their right to a fair trial. The jury has gone before a national audience and made a mockery of our judicial system. The foreman has gone as far as saying he concocted his own theory that Molly hit him in his sleep,” Mr Martens commented.
“The basic premise of serving on a jury is to not construct your own theory. The judge’s instructions specifically say they could not consider Molly to be the “aggressor”. Another juror has declared Molly to be manipulative and bipolar. She did not testify nor did any witness testify to her character in any way. Again, it does not take a legal mind to understand this is unlawful. Lastly, another juror on 20/20 made the statement the defense failed to prove them innocent. Every hour of the near four-week trial, the jury was reminded that it is the State’s burden to prove the defendants guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The defense has no burden meaning they do not have to prove anything.”
Now known as Prisoner Number 1551729, the former model and nanny is coming to grips with life in North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women, the state’s primary female correctional facility. In her new home, she will keep company with some of the most violent women in the US, including those facing the death penalty.
Mona Earnest, the wife of Molly Martens-Corbett’s uncle, Michael Earnest, has set up a GoGetFunding page —which is called ‘Right the Wrong, Help Molly and Tom’ — to help the Martens’ with their $300,000 (€254,000) legal costs for lodging an appeal.
This week she posted pictures on their fundraising page of their supporters handing out leaflets about their conviction in Washington DC.
At the time of going to print, $18,447 had been donated to the appeal fund for the convicted killers.
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