Jared Remy, of Boston Massachusetts pleaded guilty on Tuesday, May 27th 2014 for the murder of fiancée, Jennifer Martel. Remy, was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole for stabbing his fiancée to death in August 2013, two days after he was arrested for assaulting her. According to Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan, Jared was on the brink of losing Jennifer and that is why he lashed out on her in rage. Jared Remy is the son of former hall of fame Boston Red Sox broadcaster, Jerry Remy.
Remy plead guilty, holding him accountable for his actions and solidifying his fate, life in prison. The assault took place just two days before the murder. Remy had been charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, he grabbed Martel by the neck and head and slammed her into a bathroom mirror. Martel had quickly taken their daughter and scurried to a nearby neighbour’s house and phoned 911. On the phone with the police, Martel stated that Remy is a violent person that is on a lot of medication and who might need serious help.
The Middlesex district attorney’s office performed an internal review following the death of Jennifer Martel, which then ensued some countrywide procedural changes on how domestic abuse cases are treated. It should be noted that Massachusetts had struck down the death penalty in the early 1980s for being unconstitutional and that is why Remy will be spending the rest of his life in prison.
Source: http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/27/justice/red-sox-announcer-son-guilty-murder/index.html?hpt=ju_c2
Response by Ashlin Kenuck
This is yet another occurrence of the alarming rates of murders that happen after a known abuser has been released. This is a perfect example of how our legal systems have completely failed victims of abuse. Changes to the legal system must be made and implemented now before more innocent people lose their lives. It is instances like this that have caused victims to feel hesitant about coming forward about abuse. There is little protection for victims from abusive people and it is tragic that after Ms. Martel came forward to express her concerns for her safety that Mr. Remy was released. In response to the previous comment, even though Remy was penalized to the full extent of the law after he murdered his wife and the influence of his father was not a factor, is it possible that his initial release was a result of his father’s “celebrity” status?
This is a rare glimpse at a open and shut case, at least based on the facts presented. I would be curious to know what medication Mr. Remy was on and how long he was diagnosed with a condition that required medication. Personally, if this had been a recurring problem, that Ms. Martel should have sought out help earlier. The time difference between the assault and the murder are within a close timeframe, however, I must wonder if anything similar had occurred before, but had not been reported. It also seems like Mr. Remy knew his wrong to plead guilty. It seems, with the death penalty not existent in the state, that he could have pleaded not-guilty and tried to pursue a lesser penalty.
This is yet another sad case of domestic violence or even more specifically breakup violence. You hear about this too often where a victim of abuse has reached out for help and we have failed as a society to help them before it’s too late. I must say I agree with the sentence of life in prison. This is a man that needs to get some help and should have received it a long time ago. It is such a shame that his behaviour escalated to the point where two lives were lost, his girlfriend, the victim of his abuse and his life, because he was unable to control his behaviour before it got to this point.
I am glad that the fact that Remy is the son of a famous baseball player did not affect the severity of his punishment. Do you think these procedural changes to domestic cases may be able to prevent the escalation from abuse to murder in the future?