The N.C. Supreme Court ordered on Friday a new trial for Molly Corbett and Thomas Martens in the 2015 murder of Irish businessman Jason Corbett, saying that the two were denied a fair trial.
The decision comes about two months after the court heard oral arguments in the case via video due to the ongoing pandemic. In a 4-3 decision, the state Supreme Court upheld the decision by the N.C. Court of Appeals to overturn the murder convictions of Molly Corbett and Martens.
In the next three weeks, they will be moved from state prison to the Davidson County Jail. Their attorneys will ask a judge to set a bond affordable enough for them to be released from custody. In 2016, after they were charged with murder, they were each released on a $200,000 bond.
The court will issue a decision at a later date, likely months from now.Â
Molly Corbett, 37, who was Jason s second wife, and Thomas Martens, 70, a former FBI agent and Molly s father, are each serving up to 25 years in prison after a Davidson County jury convicted them of second-degree murder in Jason Corbett s death. In February 2020, the N.C. Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 to overturn the murder convictions after finding that the trial judge, David Lee, made a series of errors that the appellate court said denied the two defendants a fair trial.Â
Prosecutors for the N.C. Attorney s Office, which represents the Davidson County District Attorney s Office, immediately filed an appeal. The case has garnered national and international attention, with Irish journalists covering the trial. ABC s 20/20 and CBS s 48 Hours both did stories on the case.Â