Florida Department of Corrections James Martin in his mugshot./Christy Martin at a Boxing Hall of Fame presentation.
Boxer Christy Martin was stabbed and shot by her husband, James Martin, who is now serving a lengthy sentence in a Florida prison for attempted murder, according to jail records.
Christy Martin now uses her maiden name, Christy Salters, according to a Sports Illustrated feature. James V. Martin is 77 years old today. The case is being discussed tonight on a 48 Hours special, “Christy Martin: The Fight for Her Life,” which airs at 9 p.m. Eastern time on Investigation Discovery.
“Opponents feared boxer Christy Martin in the ring,” the episode description says. “However, it was at home where Martin fought her biggest battle, the one for her life. Now, Martin is speaking out for other victims of domestic abuse. David Begnaud reports.”
Here’s what you need to know:
James Victor Martin Is Serving a 35-Year Sentence in a Jackson County, Florida Prison
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Martin was sentenced to 35 years in prison after investigators said he viciously attacked his wife, shooting and stabbing her, on November 23, 2010. He was convicted of 2nd degree attempted murder, which carried a 25-year sentence, and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, which carried a 10-year sentence, his prison record shows.
Martin is serving out his 35-year sentence at the Graceville Correctional Facility in Graceville, Florida.
Here is his inmate information:
Florida Department of CorrectionsJames Martin’s prison record.
Martin is now 77 years old. His custody status is listed as medium, according to his prison record. He could be released on November 22, 2035.
James Martin Shot Christy Martin With Her Own Pink Gun & Left Her to Die, Police Said
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James Martin brutally beat his wife at their home in Florida before investigators said he shot her in the chest with her own pink 9-mm gun, according to a Sports Illustrated feature. Martin was accused of stabbing his wife three times in the chest, causing a collapsed lung, and stabbing her calf nearly to the bone, the article said. He also pistol-whipped her and bashed her head off a dresser, the article said, before he pointed her gun at her.
“You can’t f****** kill me,” she said before he shot her in the chest, according to the article.
Pink, the article said, was her trademark color used as a marketing ploy. It was also her favorite color, so when she bought a gun, she wanted it to be pink, the article said.
“Years before that, a small-time promoter had first dressed her in pink as a marketing ploy, and the color stuck as she climbed boxing’s ranks,” the article said. “She sported a pink robe, which she accented with a championship belt in 1996. She rocked pink wrist tape at crowded press events; she was one of Don King’s biggest draws when Mike Tyson was unavailable. And when Christy Martin ushered women’s boxing into the mainstream by appearing on the April 15, 1996 cover of Sports Illustrated, she did so wearing pink shorts. Pink got her recognized on Rodeo Drive and Fifth Avenue. But now the only pink she could see was the blurry barrel of a Glock, safety off, loaded with a metallic bullet.”
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