The Irish Mail on Sunday

KILLER MOLLY ENJOYS HER FREEDOM ON TRIPS IN U.S.

She takes in baseball game and hiking after release

- By Sheila Flynn news@mailonsund­ay.ie

A BASEBALL game in Chicago. A scenic mountain walk in Oregon. Posing with a pooch while out hiking.

It’s been nearly three months since Molly Martens and her father walked free from a North Carolina jail – and she’s been taking full advantage of her new-found liberty by holidaying from coast to coast across America while her late husband’s family continues to campaign for justice.

Ms Martens, 37, and her retired FBI agent father Tom had been convicted of second-degree murder in 2017 for the death two years earlier of her husband, Jason Corbett, a father-of-two from Limerick. He was fatally beaten in the master bedroom of the upscale North Carolina home the pair shared with his son, Jack, and daughter, Sarah.

But the North Carolina Supreme Court in March issued a 4-3 retrial decision that saw the former model and her father leave prison on April 7.

The decision effectivel­y vacated their conviction­s, and the Davidson County district attorney has yet to rule on whether the pair will be retried. A plea deal could also be worked out, and if a retrial does take place, a court backlog makes it unlikely it would happen before 2022.

In the meantime, however, Molly has been travelling the States. Upon her release, she returned with her father to the luxury family home in Knoxville, Tennessee, where her mother had been undergoing cancer treatment.

Molly has two brothers, one of whom – Connor Martens – has been especially vocal on social media about his family’s innocence. He has also posted prolifical­ly about his travels throughout the country, and Molly has joined him. On June 1 he shared a photograph of himself, along with his girlfriend and Molly, outside of Chicago’s Wrigley Field baseball stadium, home of the Chicago Cubs.

Less than two weeks later he posted photos from picturesqu­e mountain landscapes in Oregon, including one posed with Molly in front of a tour bus. Unlike prison photos of his sister, she appears happy, healthy and carefree, her hair and skin flawless.

Connor Martens also posted photos from a beach bar in North Carolina and a whirlwind trip to New York City, where he and others in his group visited Yankee Stadium and the Statue of Liberty. While Molly didn’t appear in those pictures, the siblings are exceptiona­lly close and clearly enjoy travelling together.

Following the supreme court decision in March – before his father and sister were even granted bond – Connor wrote on Instagram: ‘In lieu of recent family news, I decided to give my sister my care and get a “new truck”’ – posting a photo of himself on the flatbed of a red pickup with two dogs. It’s evident Molly has been enjoying the freedom of transporta­tion and travel across the US. She has also been using private Facebook and Instagram accounts herself.

She has, however, been barred from contacting the Corbett family or Jason’s two children. Both sides have bitterly different narratives about Molly’s relationsh­ip with her husband and his son and daughter; according to the Martens side, the Limerick man was abusive and the beating occurred in self-defence.

According to the Corbett family, Molly was manipulati­ve and panicking that Jason would move back to Ireland with the children, whose mother, Mags Fitzpatric­k, had died of an asthma attack when they were young.

As Molly travelled the US upon her release, Jason’s daughter Sarah Corbett Lynch – now in the custody of her paternal aunt and uncle, along with her brother – was posting on social media for Father’s Day including a picture of her late father.

1. Halterneck swimsuit, €191, Rixo

2. Animal print swimsuit, €75, Whistles

3. Multicolou­red swimsuit, €39, & Other Stories

4. Tropical floral swimsuit, €23, F&F, Tesco

5. Green gingham bikini top €30, briefs, €25, River Island

6. Tropical floral top, €38, briefs, €27, Pour Moi, Littlewood­s

7. Red keyhole shaping swimsuit, €48, Accessoriz­e, Littlewood­s

8. Cut out swimsuit, €25.99, New Look

9. Black halter neck tummy control swimsuit, €40, M&S

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Molly and Connor embrace in front of a tour bus
3 Great outdoors Molly on a hiking adventure where she cradles a dog on top of a rocky outcrop
2 On the road Molly and Connor embrace in front of a tour bus 3 Great outdoors Molly on a hiking adventure where she cradles a dog on top of a rocky outcrop
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Molly poses with her brother Connor and his girlfriend at Wrigley Field baseball in stadium Chicago
1 Baseball game Molly poses with her brother Connor and his girlfriend at Wrigley Field baseball in stadium Chicago
 ??  ?? Freed: Molly Martens was released from jail back in April
Freed: Molly Martens was released from jail back in April
 ??  ?? Killed: Jason Corbett was beaten to death
Killed: Jason Corbett was beaten to death
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Monochrome triangle halter bikini top, €5, Penneys
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Pink pattern frill shoulder bikini top, €9, Penneys
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9
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