Molly Martens and her father Tom could spend as little as seven extra months in jail for the manslaughter of her husband Jason Corbett. 

The pair were originally convicted of murdering Mr Corbett; however, the North Carolina Supreme Court later ordered a retrial.

They then accepted charges of voluntary manslaughter as part of a plea deal and were sentenced to between 51 and 74 months in jail at the court in Lexington overnight.

As they have already served 44 months, they could be freed as early as June next year.

“He [the judge] had said he would give them some mitigation,” Irish Times journalist Martin Wall explained. 

“He pointed to Tom Martens service as an FBI agent and his service in the defence and energy industries in the US and gave them some credit for that. 

“But then sentenced them to between seven months and two-and-a-half-years in prison.” 

Testimonies

Earlier this week, the judge heard from colleagues and friends of Tom Martens who testified about his decades long career in law enforcement. 

Yesterday, the court heard from Mr Corbett’s children, Jack and Sarah, who gave Victim Impact Statements ahead of the sentencing. 

So far, there has been no reaction from the Corbett family to the sentences, although the defence team described the judge’s decision as “more than just”. 

“The defence counsel seemed reasonably happy with the issue of the sentence,” Mr Wall said. 

“Presumably, it could have been worse but we know over the next day or so, I suspect, what the reaction [from the family] will be.” 

The judge had the option of imposing a sentence of parole or 17 years in prison. 

Afterwards, the Martens were led away to jail in handcuffs.

Main image: Molly Martens at the sentence hearing after pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter of Jason Corbett, 30/10/2023. Image: Associated Press / Alamy Stock Photo