A former commercial airline pilot and U.S. Army Ranger officer has been convicted in Hardin County for murdering three people, the attorney general’s office announced Wednesday.
Prosecutors said Christian R. Martin, 53, of Pembroke (Christian County), was convicted of fatally shooting three of his neighbors, Edward Dansereau and Calvin and Pamela Phillips, in November 2015.
Martin was a major with the U.S. Army Rangers and formerly a pilot for a United Airlines subsidiary, PSA Airlines.
Calvin Phillips, 59, was found shot to death with a .45 caliber pistol in his Pembroke home on November 19. The remains of Dansereau, 63, and Pamela Phillips, 58, were later discovered in a burnt vehicle in a field. They had been shot with a .22 caliber pistol prior to being taken by Martin to the field several miles away where Martin set the vehicle on fire.
The murders took place two weeks before Calvin Phillips was scheduled to testify in Martin’s military court-martial trial on multiple charges. The military court eventually convicted Martin of mishandling classified information and assault on a child. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail and discharged after 30 years of military service.
After a two week trial in Hardin County Circuit Court, a jury convicted Martin of all charges, including three counts of murder, one count of first-degree arson, attempted arson, two counts of first-degree burglary, and three counts of tampering with physical evidence.
Martin was indicted by a Christian County Grand Jury on May 10, 2019, and was arrested at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport the following day by U.S. Marshals, Louisville police and the Christian County Sheriff’s Office.
The trial was initially scheduled to occur in Christian County; however, due to pre-trial publicity, a Christian Circuit Court Judge ordered it be held in Hardin County.
The sentencing phase of the trial begins Thursday.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
