I WILL RUIN YOU: THE TWISTED TRUTH BEHIND THE KIT MARTIN MURDER TRIAL
By Emilio Corsetti III
Publication Date: March 26, 2024
True Crime Nonfiction
Moments before boarding a passenger flight on 11 May 2019 as the first officer, pilot Christian “Kit” Martin, a former army ranger, was arrested by a swarm of heavily armed officers for the murders of three of his neighbors. The arrest captured global attention as Martin’s mugshot, clad in a pilot’s uniform, spread across the internet, sparking a media firestorm with headlines such as “Monster in the Cockpit.”
A combat helicopter pilot, Kit Martin had seen his life unravel after seeking a divorce. His wife’s threatening words, “If you leave me, I will ruin your life …,” overheard by his daughter, seemed to have become a grim reality, escalating to a court-martial and culminating in a high-stakes murder trial at which he was convicted.
I WILL RUIN YOU: The Twisted Truth Behind the Kit Martin Murder Trial delves into the complex circumstances behind Martin’s story. It looks beyond the sensational headlines and legal turmoil into the heart of this controversial case.
You can purchase I Will Ruin You: The Twisted Truth Behind the Kit Martin Murder Trial at Amazon.
The tension had been building for months. The date was September 5, 2012. By this time, Kit and Joan had been married for nearly eight years. They had experienced the same ups and downs as any other married couple. There were arguments. They argued about finances. They argued about Kit’s ex-wife and her frequent calls to Kit. The arguments between the two, however,had grownmore frequent after the move to Pembroke,Kentucky. Kit, an army major with the 101st Airborne Division, had been assigned to
nearby Fort Campbell a year earlier.
It was a Wednesday night. Everyone living in the house on South Main at the time was home. It was a mixed family with kids from previous marriages residing under the same roof. Joan’s son Elijah, sixteen, was in the kitchen. Kit’s daughter McKenzie was in the downstairs bathroom, helping Joan’s nine-year-old daughter Essie dry her hair and paint her nails. McKenzie had moved into the house in Pembroke several weeks earlier after transferring to Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee. She was nineteen.
Joan’s oldest daughter Alma, eleven, was in her upstairs bedroom doing her homework, using her bed as her desk. This night’s argument had to do with what Joan felt was a personal slight. She had learned that Kit and McKenzie had been planning a lunch date that didn’t include her. Joan confronted Kit in the backyard, where he fed the few farm animals they kept. She complained about Kit’s lack of communication. Kit tried his best to separate himself from Joan. He entered the house and took off his boots in the mudroom. All he wanted to do was take a shower and relax. The fighting, however, continued. Joan wanted to know why Kit didn’t treat her better. They hadn’t been anywhere as a couple in months.
Kit grew angry. He complained about her spending, especially money spent on astrology, psychics, and an anti-religious organization called Nouveau Tech.
Emilio Corsetti III is a retired airline pilot and the author of the bestselling nonfiction books 35 Miles From Shore and Scapegoat. Emilio is a graduate of St. Louis University Parks College of Aviation. He and his wife, Lynn, reside in Dallas, Texas.
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