A Deadly American Marriage True Story: Inside Jason Corbett's Brutal Killing — and Why His Children Believe He Was Murdered

In 2015, Jason Corbett was beaten to death by his wife of four years, Molly Martens, and her father, Thomas Martens.

While they claimed they acted in self-defense and painted Jason as a longtime abuser, his family believed that the Martens murdered him. 

Jason’s death and the subsequent trial that found Molly and Thomas guilty of second-degree murder were explored in depth in the 2025 Netflix documentary A Deadly American Marriage. Their conviction was overturned before they eventually pled no contest to voluntary manslaughter.

In the documentary, Molly detailed how she met the Irish businessman as an au pair and grew incredibly close to his young children, Jack Corbett Lynch and Sarah Corbett Lynch, following the death of their mother, Margaret “Mags” Fitzpatrick, in 2006. 

After the couple wed in 2011, they moved to North Carolina to be closer to Molly’s family. But tensions between the two grew, with Jason’s family claiming he wanted to leave his wife and return to Ireland with his kids, and Molly claiming that her husband was becoming increasingly abusive. 

The documentary, released on May 9, includes interviews with Molly, Thomas, Jack and Sarah as well as other members of Jason’s family.

Here’s everything to know about the true story of A Deadly American Marriage. 

Jason was killed on Aug. 2, 2015

In the early morning hours of Aug. 2, 2015, Thomas called 9-1-1 to report that his son-in-law had been badly injured following a physical altercation with Molly.

“My son-in-law got in a fight with my daughter,” Thomas said in the call, shared in a 2020 episode of 48 Hours. “I intervened, and he’s in bad shape. We need help. He’s bleeding all over, and I may have killed him.”

When police officers arrived at the North Carolina home, Jason was unresponsive, the Irish Independent reported. He later died of his injuries. 

Related Stories

Where Are Jason Corbett’s Kids Now? Inside Their Lives 10 Years After His Murder

Where Are Jason Corbett’s Killers Now? Inside Molly and Thomas Martens’ Lives

An autopsy report obtained by the Greensboro News and Record listed blunt force trauma to the head as his cause of death. The father of two was struck at least 12 times “with a bat and a landscape type rock,” and had bleeding in several areas of his brain. 

Molly and Thomas claim they killed him in self-defense

Both the father and daughter told investigators that Jason’s death was the result of self-defense after he attempted to strangle Molly. Thomas, who was staying the night after a family dinner, alleged that he woke up to a commotion coming from the couple’s room and grabbed a bat he had brought as a gift for the kids. 

When he walked into their bedroom, Thomas told filmmakers in A Deadly American Marriage that he saw the couple engaged in a physical altercation and heard Jason verbally threaten his daughter. He also claimed that Jason had been intoxicated that evening. 

Footage shared by 48 Hours showed Molly telling police that she hit her husband with a brick on her nightstand after he started fighting with her father. She told filmmakers that she didn’t commit a crime. 

“I had one moment in this altercation where I protected my father,” she said. “If I hadn’t done that, I believe that he would be dead, and then I would also have been killed.”

Molly alleged that Jason was physically abusive

In the 48 Hours footage, Molly told investigators that Jason had a history of domestic violence and that it had been going on “forever.” Thomas backed up his daughter’s claims in his interview with police and said that Jason was “very controlling and abusive.” 

“The incidents occurred as they did on a somewhat regular basis,” Molly said in court about the alleged abuse, per ABC News. She never reported any abuse to the police. 

Days after Jason’s death, his two children were interviewed by a social worker and claimed to have witnessed the abuse Molly had alleged. However, Jack and Sarah, who were 10 and 8 at the time, recanted their statements nine months later and claimed their stepmother had coached them on what to say. 

Jason’s family believes he was murdered

Tracey Lynch, Jason’s sister, told 48 Hours that she believed Molly and Thomas murdered him because he wanted to move back to Ireland with the children. Though she had wanted to officially adopt Jack and Sarah, Jason wouldn’t allow it because of her “erratic” behavior. 

“There isn’t a shadow of a doubt in my mind that Jason was beaten to death because he was going to leave with the kids,” Tracey said in 48 Hours, adding that she believed Molly found out about her brother’s plans to return home the night he died.

Molly and Thomas were charged with second-degree murder in 2016 

In January 2016, Molly and Thomas were charged with second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter, The Knoxville News Sentinel reported. They both pleaded not guilty to all charges, per The Irish Independent, and were tried in August 2017. 

Molly and Thomas were found guilty of second-degree murder and sentenced to 20 to 25 years in prison, CBS News reported. However, the North Carolina Supreme Court overturned the case in March 2021, citing a lack of a fair trial because the jury wasn’t allowed to see Jack and Sarah’s videotaped statements corroborating Molly’s claims of abuse, according to the Associated Press. 

The father and daughter pleaded no contest to reduced charges of voluntary manslaughter in October 2023 to avoid another trial, per the AP. The next month, the outlet reported that a judge had reduced their sentence to 51 to 74 months for good behavior.  

Molly and Thomas were released from prison in June 2024

After spending a total of 51 months in prison, the AP reported that both Molly and Thomas were released in June 2024. In their interviews for A Deadly American Marriage, the father and daughter maintained that Jason was abusive and that they killed him in self-defense.

Molly said that she’s not allowed to have any contact with Jack and Sarah. 

“I think that they hate the person that they think that I am,” she told filmmakers. “They think of me as an evil abuser and they think their father was wonderful.” 

Jack and Sarah moved back to Limerick, Ireland, and currently reside with their aunt Tracey.