73-year-old Tri-City murder suspect says he ‘snapped’ after his wife stole his valuable penny
Murder charges are on hold for a 73-year-old Kennewick man while his mental state is evaluated by Washington state medical professionals.
Officials at Eastern State Hospital will be assessing if Leroy N. Martin is competent to be tried for the stabbing death of his wife 2 1/2 weeks ago.
He’s charged with second-degree murder and is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail in the Benton County jail.
Susan Martin, 66, was found unconscious about 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 30 in the bathroom of her apartment by her daughter.
The Martins lived in an outbuilding in the backyard of 3904 W. Seventh Ave.
Leroy Martin also was at the apartment at the time and remained sitting on the couch while his daughter and her boyfriend pulled Susan Martin out of the bathroom and started CPR.
When the first officer arrived, he found Susan Martin didn’t have a pulse and took over efforts to resuscitate her. Kennewick medics also tried, but weren’t able to revive her.
They reported she had two stab wounds, and they spotted a knife with blood on it. Police officers also noticed a frying pan near her.
An autopsy by the coroner’s office found her lung and small intestine had been punctured. She also had injuries that were consistent with being strangled.
Mental health troubles
Family members told investigators they believed Leroy Martin has the onset of dementia and suffers from bouts of paranoia, according to court documents.
He believed his wife was having an affair with a neighbor and had previously nailed the door shut so she couldn’t leave, according to court documents.
Investigators were told that the relationship had been turbulent recently, including arguing and screaming and that he called her names.
“They report Susan has lived in fear of Leroy, and a family friend had told them that she believed that Leroy was going to kill Susan,” court documents stated.
After the stabbing, Leroy Martin told police his wife stole a valuable coin from him. He said his son-in-law had given him a 1943 penny worth $1.7 million and that it was missing.
“The defendant stated that he possibly got carried away and that ‘stealing from me after 47 years of marriage, I guess I snapped. I don’t know,’” according to court documents.
In 2019 news stories reported about a rare copper penny that could possibly bring $1.7 million at auction. But the news accounts were later corrected to say the actual estimated worth was $170,000.
It’s not clear in court documents if Martin actually owns a valuable coin.
He told police that he and his wife argued in the morning and that she had hit him with a frying pan. He claimed she dropped the pan, and he picked it up and hit her with it.
He denied stabbing her.