The ABC interviews: telling the Martens’ story

THE ABC INTERVIEWS: TOM AND MOLLY ON TAPE

WITHIN seconds of the sentencing hearing being concluded, pandemonium erupted outside the courts complex.

For the bulk of the four-week hearing, the court had been less than half full. However, as the trial neared its conclusion, the courtroom swelled to near capacity as locals, the curious and murder case “vultures”, as one Davidson County sheriff dismissively described them, gathered for the verdict.

Dozens now milled around outside, hoping to listen to TV interviews given by the legal teams and the key figures on both sides. For many, in an often forgotten part of the US, it was a chance to appear on TV. Others gathered simply for a glimpse of the father and daughter being taken away to prison in handcuffs.

The trial had attracted enormous media attention on both sides of the Atlantic. It was attended almost daily by US news teams including crews from major networks including NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox8 and the local station of WXII.

The case was also covered daily by local newspapers including The Lexington Dispatch, The Winston-Salem Journal, The Thomasville Times and The High Point Enterprise.

For local US reporters, it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to earn some additional money by supplying reports on a freelance basis to the Irish newspapers who hadn’t assigned a staff reporter to cover the trial.

However, everyone – including the small Irish media team present since July 17 – had presumed the case wouldn’t finish before Thursday, August 10 in the expectation of at least three days of jury deliberations.

The 11.25am verdict on Wednesday took everyone by surprise and the huge media presence was now switching into full gear for coverage that would dominate headlines across the US and Ireland for days to come.

TV outside broadcast units that weren’t already parked outside the Davidson County courts complex now rushed to get into position.

By the security exit from Davidson County Courthouse, photographers and TV crews waited for a first glimpse of the father and daughter in custody.

Both were in a holding area of the courts complex and were being processed and prepared for their transfer to prisons in Raleigh.

Because of the fact they had been convicted of second degree murder, neither would be kept in custody in the Davidson County jail which was located directly adjacent to the courts building.

Some two hours after the sentencing, Thomas Martens and Molly Martens-Corbett were escorted from the building for the short walk to a waiting prison truck.