Eleven days after losing custody of her stepchildren and less than a month after killing her Irish husband, Molly Martens drove through an intersection while “out of it” and crashed into her parent’s neighbour’s brick mailbox, causing thousands of dollars in damages.
Molly’s parents, Tom and Sharon, arrived at the scene where they convinced their neighbour and another witness, a nurse, not to report the incident to police.
Detectives from North Carolina travelled to Tennessee to investigate the crash and the cover-up in January 2016, two weeks after Molly and Tom Martens were charged with the August 2015 second-degree murder of Molly’s husband, Limerickman Jason Corbett.
Mr Corbett (39) was beaten to death with a baseball bat and a brick in the master bedroom of his North Carolina home by Tom (65) and Molly (31), who claimed they acted in self-defence.
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The Martens were convicted of second-degree murder in a 2017 trial but the verdict was overturned on appeal. In October 2023, they received a reduced sentence under a plea deal they accepted for voluntary manslaughter. Both were released from prison in June 2024, having served four years and three months for the killing, which orphaned Jack (10) and Sarah (8) – Jason’s children from his first marriage to Mags Fitzpatrick.
Detectives Michael Hurd and Brandon Smith travelled to Knoxville, Tennessee, on January 18th, 2016 to investigate a tip-off that Molly Martens had been involved in an unreported car crash 11 days after losing her legal battle with Tracey Lynch, Jason’s sister, for guardianship of Jack and Sarah. The detectives spoke to Stephen Eimers, a registered nurse and an EMT, who witnessed Molly “blast through an intersection and strike a brick mailbox and electrical box”.
Detective case notes, released following a public records request, reveal that Tom Martens covered up the car crash. Knox County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to detectives Smith and Hurd that they had no police reports on file for the crash.
The four-door Toyota sedan Molly was driving belonged to her younger brother, Connor. It was written off. Detectives established that despite not reporting the incident to police, Tom made a successful insurance claim to recover the value of the car, and to repair the $2,300 damage caused to the mailbox.
Det Hurd’s case notes reveal that on August 31st, 2015, around midday, Mr Eimers was driving through the Comblain Road neighbourhood when he witnessed the crash. Det Hurd took handwritten notes of Mr Eimers’ statement: “He went up to her. She was out of it, but [he] did not smell alcohol. She said [she was] not drinking ... Did not want police called. Leaves her name – Molly Corbett.”
Mr Eimers remembered Molly Martens having a couple of bruises. “Molly talked to Eimers about the children being taken away to Ireland.”
The detective wrote. “Eimers said that he believed she may have been impaired due to her glassy eyes but [he] did not smell anything on or coming from her.”
The case notes continue: “Eimers strongly suggested to call the police for the wreck. Molly and her mother (who had arrived at this time) denied wanting to call the police. They said her father would take care of it and would know what to do, he arrived shortly after. Tom arrived. None of the three [Molly, Tom or Sharon] wanted the police.”
Weldon McBride the owner of the mailbox on Comblain Road confirmed that Tom, Sharon and Molly were insistent that the police should not be called.
Sarah Corbett Lynch: ‘My dad was abused, he was a victim’
”Tom Martens came to the house and introduced his self. When McBride suggested he was going to call the police. Tom said he didn’t want the police and would handle it, pay for the damages. Tom’s insurance contacted McBride and fixed the mailbox. McBride never spoke with Molly, only had interactions with Tom.”
The detectives believed the car crash incident had added significance as it showed Tom had a history of cleaning up after Molly. Weeks after Mr Corbett was killed, detectives had learned from Tom’s work colleagues in Tennessee that he spoke several times about problems Molly’s bipolar disorder was causing him.
The Martens completed their parole on June 6th last, meaning they can now move freely within the United States and live together in the family home.
Journalist Brian Carroll was co-producer of the Netflix film A Deadly American Marriage. A Deadly Marriage by Brian Carroll is published by Sandycove, an imprint of Penguin Random House, and is available from August 21st
