A Deadly American Marriage on Netflix: how a love turned into a nightmare
Netflix has expanded its true crime empire a little bit again, and not with the least title. ‘A Deadly American Marriage’ is one that you will think about for a long time. A family feud spirals completely out of control and ends with deadly consequences. It is the beginning of a complicated case; did the feud come out of nowhere and was it self-defense, or was there a plan behind it?.
From dream marriage to nightmare: the story behind A Deadly American Marriage
When the wife of Irishman Jason Corbett passes away, he is left with their two young children, Jack and Sarah. Two years later, he decides to seek help and hires American Molly Martens, a former model, as an au pair. Not long after she arrives at the family, a relationship blossoms between her and Jason. The two marry and they move with the four of them to North Carolina, not far from Molly's family. The family seems happy and the children see their former au pair more as a mother now. But that happiness comes to an end on the night of August 2, 2015. Thomas Martens, Molly's father and former FBI agent, calls 112 and says that his daughter and son-in-law have gotten into a fight and that he had to intervene. According to him, Jason is in bad shape and Thomas does not know if he is still alive. Ultimately, Jason does not survive the violent argument. Molly claims that the fight was self-defense, Jason allegedly tried to strangle her and her father was only trying to protect her. But the detectives who dive into the case are not so sure about that.
The possible motive behind the tragedy in A Deadly American Marriage
While the family may have seemed very happy and carefree to the outside world, in reality, it was quite different. There had been tensions between the couple for some time and their marriage was not as strong as in the early years. Molly was afraid that Jason would leave her and return to Ireland with Jack and Sarah. Although Molly saw them as her own children by now, there had never been an official adoption. So it was uncertain whether she would ever be able to see them in the event of a divorce should it ever happen. Also, the fact that Jason had named his sister and brother-in-law as guardians, not her, should he pass away prematurely, caused additional uncertainty for Molly. All these tensions could have led to a normal argument spiraling completely out of control that night.
The conflicting stories in the Netflix docu
Where it initially seems quite clear who the perpetrator and who the victim is, the documentary manages to make viewers doubt. Two stories remain directly opposed to each other. Molly and Thomas continue to assert that Jason was out of control and had abused her before. His family, especially his sister and brother-in-law, believe none of this; they see Molly as manipulative and are convinced that she knew exactly what she was doing. They all have their own evidence and witnesses. Both parties cooperated in the documentary and continue to hold on to their own beliefs in the various interviews with the creators. As a viewer, you will continuously doubt who is telling the truth and what really happened that day.
The voice of the children in A Deadly American Marriage
Jack and Sarah also played an important role in the case. Their statements were a significant reason for the withdrawal of the initial conviction. Shortly after their father's death, both children were interrogated; in their statements, they said that Jason had been violent towards Molly, but they later retracted these statements. When these statements were used as evidence in the new conviction, both children spoke out again and clearly turned against Molly. Jack and Sarah have been living with their uncle and aunt since their father's death, who also have official guardianship over them. While Jack is very concerned about his privacy and does not talk much about the death of his parents, Sarah wrote two books about her experiences to tell her own story. Both found it important to cooperate in the Netflix documentary to draw more attention to the lack of justice in the American legal system and to be a voice for their father.
Where are Molly and Thomas now?
Molly and Thomas were charged in 2016 with second-degree murder and manslaughter, but both continued to deny it. They appeared in court and were sentenced to prison terms of 20 to 25 years. However, they both did not serve that long, as after more than three years the judge's decision was overturned. The trial was said to have been unfair and evidence was allegedly withheld. To avoid a new case, Molly and Thomas decided to plead guilty to manslaughter and accept a settlement. The two received a new sentence of 51 to 74 months; but since they had already served time and behaved well, they only had to spend an additional seven months in prison. In June 2024, they were both released. Molly returned to her family in Knoxville, Tennessee, where her family also lives; there she seems to be leading an unremarkable life now. Thomas also returned to his family after his time in prison.
The documentary takes you through this complicated case and makes you seriously doubt what the truth is. That is precisely why this is a must-see for all my fellow true crime lovers. ‘A Deadly American Marriage’ is now available on Netflix.
Image: Netflix
