The guilty plea by a Loganville woman who stabbed and killed her husband and four of her five children was the best resolution prosecutors could hope for, Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter said Wednesday.
Isabel Martinez, 35, pleaded guilty but mentally ill late Tuesday to the murders and additional charges, including cruelty to children. She will not be eligible for parole for at least 30 years and may not be eligible for parole for up to 40 years because of all the charges she pleaded guilty to, Porter said.
If Martinez is ever released on parole, he added, there is an immigration hold awaiting her for deportation back to Mexico.
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Friends and family members said Martinez was a doting mother who had made friends in the mobile home community where she and her family lived. But after the death of her father, everything changed.
She had already struggled with mental illness, on the morning of July 6, 2017, Martinez seemingly snapped. She stabbed her five children and husband, killing all but one daughter. Martinez then called 911 to report what she had done.
Martinez was arrested and charged with murder the same day. The following morning, her bizarre behavior in a courtroom offered insight into her mental state: Martinez was seen smiling and flashing a double “thumbs up” at the cameras.
Porter said he decided not to seek the death penalty against Martinez because she is mentally ill. She has been diagnosed as schizophrenic, he said.
Because she pleaded guilty but mentally ill, Martinez will first be referred to the Department of Human Resources for treatment.
“She may never get out of that,” Porter said.
If she is determined to be fit enough, she will be sent to the prison system to serve her time, he said.
Credit: None None
Credit: None None
“There was no way she wasn’t going to be found guilty of these murders,” Porter said. “I believe guilty but mentally ill was the best outcome we could get.”
Don Geary, Martinez’s defense attorney, did not return messages seeking comment.
The Gwinnett District Attorney’s office was in regular contact with Martinez’ surviving daughter and her guardians through the duration of the case, prosecutor Rich Vandever said. The child now lives with relatives. Multiple family members were present when Martinez entered her guilty plea, but they did not want to make victim impact statements, Vandever said.
“This is a sad case on both sides. It’s probably, because of the family aspect and the mental health aspect, one of the worst cases I’ve seen in 20 years,” he said. “There are no winners in this case. There are none.”
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