The Tennessee Board of Parole has denied Ronald David Martin’s request for release and set 2032 as the next year in which he will be considered, according to WATE and WBIR.
Members of the Romines family opposed Martin’s release. The opposition also included Eighth Judicial District Attorney General Jared Effler, former District Attorney General William Paul Phillips and Assistant District Attorney General Ron Laffitte, WATE reported.
The convictions and sentences
Martin pleaded guilty to two first-degree murder charges and received two consecutive life sentences, according to WATE. The victims were Wanda Romines, 51, and her 15-year-old daughter, Sheila. They were killed at the family’s Union County home near Big Ridge State Park, WBIR reported.
Martin was 17 at the time of the March 17, 1986, killings. WBIR reported that juvenile law then barred the death penalty for him, and that he pleaded guilty instead of risking a trial as an adult that could have exposed him to capital punishment.
West’s separate sentence
Stephen Michael West was also convicted in connection with the killings. He was executed by electrocution at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in August 2019 after 32 years on death row, according to WPLN News.
Martin remains subject to the two life sentences. His next parole consideration is scheduled for 2032, WATE reported.
