Man who drove Corvette 138 mph gets 30 years to life for drunken California crash that killed 2 women
A 27-year-old Irvine man who drunkenly crashed his convertible Corvette while driving at least 138 mph on a surface street, killing his two passengers, was sentenced Friday to 30 years to life in prison.
An Orange County Superior Court jury more than a year and a half ago convicted Norman David Martin of two counts of second-degree murder for the July 27 crash at Jamboree Road in Irvine that claimed the lives of Jamie Lopez and Nancy Ortiz, both 26.
During a night out drinking with friends, Martin met Lopez and Ortiz outside a club in Costa Mesa. An Uber arrived to pick up Martin’s group, but when the driver determined there were too many people to fit into one car, Martin told his friends that he and the two women would meet them later at an Irvine apartment.
A short time later, Martin called a friend to tell him that he had picked up his car and was on his way, with the friend responding “I hope you aren’t driving.”
Martin was indeed driving the two-seat convertible, according to testimony during the trial, while Lopez and Ortiz were squeezed together in the passenger seat, neither wearing a seat belt. According to the Corvette’s on-board computer system, the car was traveling at least 138 mph seconds before reaching Jamboree Road and Main Street
The Corvette struck the intersection’s crown and went airborne, sending sparks flying out as it landed partly in an adjacent lane, still traveling more than 120 mph. Martin apparently overcorrected and steered into a curb, sending the vehicle off the roadway. All three occupants were thrown from the Corvette before the vehicle hit three palm trees and a fire hydrant and spun back into the street.
Martin and Ortiz landed in the roadway, while Lopez struck a tree.
The two women died at the scene. Martin was in a coma for weeks.
During Friday’s sentencing, tearful family members told Orange County Superior Court Judge Richard M King that Martin “had no respect for life” at the time of the crash. Ortiz’s mother told Martin, “I hope you understand the magnitude of what you did, what you took away from me and my family,” while Lopez’s fiancé told the judge, “The time of our pain, our suffering will exceed whatever the sentence will be.”
Martin in a series of seemingly random comments to the judge made unexplained references to Bill Gates and Warren Buffett before saying that aliens had told him that “Nancy and Jamie are sleeping” and “were not involved in this accident.” Martin’s current attorney, Heather Moorhead, immediately asked the judge to delay the sentencing in order to determine if Martin was competent to understand and take part in the court proceedings.
The question of Martin’s mental competency was repeatedly raised before, during and after his jury trial. During the trial itself, Martin acted as his own attorney.
Despite indicating prior to trial that he would use purported DNA and fingerprint evidence to prove he wasn’t driving at the time of the crash, Martin made no actual effort to make that case before the jury. He presented no argument, asked no questions of any prosecution witnesses and didn’t put on any of his own witnesses.
On the third day of his trial, Martin suddenly got up out of his seat before the jury and yelled out, “Please contact the FBI… Tell them to investigate. President Trump is behind this.” Asked by the judge about the outburst outside the presence of the jury, Martin replied, “The seed was correctly planted. But from this time forth, I will go back to my demeanor as I have exercised my entire life.”
The next day, after returning to county jail following hours of testimony, Martin apparently tried to jump off an upper tier in a housing unit but was grabbed by other inmates and placed on suicide watch.
Moorhead — who was appointed to represent Martin after his conviction — blamed his conduct on the traumatic head injury Martin suffered in the crash. Martin’s family members told the judge he has deteriorated over the past few years in custody.
Last month, Judge King denied a motion for a new trial, writing that there was no evidence of a major illness or disorder that would have prevented Martin from acting as his own attorney.
“The defendant had the constitutional right to represent himself without the interference of counsel,” King wrote. “He also has the right to conduct himself as he chooses, even if it is so foolish that anyone observing would predict a conviction…
“To use a metaphor, he has the right to be the captain of his ship and guide it into an iceberg knowing that the ship will sink.” The judge added. “That happened in this case.”
King — both during the trial and during Friday’s sentencing hearing — also said Martin’s outbursts seemed calculated and aimed at influencing the jurors and the judge himself. The judge noted that Martin throughout his criminal case has been evaluated nine separate times by mental health experts and found competent to stand trial.
Several of Martin’s family members expressed their sorrow for the deaths of Lopez and Ortiz. His mother, Andrea Martin, acknowledged that it was “very difficult to stand here in front of you and ask for mercy when you lost your daughters and my son is alive,” before describing the impact on her own family as “a different nightmare.”
The judge noted that Martin’s decisions — including drinking and speeding — ultimately led to the two deaths.
“All those acts were intentional — the drinking, the driving, placing these two women in harm’s way,” King said.
“This is a sad, sad day,” the judge added. “It is just so sad to hear the impact of what the defendant did on not only the victims’ families but his family, as well.”