UPDATE
Jan. 30, 2021
In less than 10 years, California man Brandon Willie Martin, 27, went from a promising early pick in the MLB draft to spending the rest of his days in prison. All of that potential was washed away the moment he murdered his father Michael Martin, 64, maternal uncle Ricky Andersen, 51, and ADT alarm installer Barry Swanson, 62. Prosecutors said he lashed out after his family put him on a 72-hour mental health hold, beating the victims to death with a baseball bat. Accordingly, the judge sentenced him on Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole, which is what jurors had recommended, Law & Crime reported.
———
Nov. 7, 2020
CORONA, Calif. — A former MLB prospect of the Tampa Bay Rays has been convicted in a triple homicide that happened at his father’s home in Corona in 2015, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office announced Thursday.
Brandon Willie Martin, 27, was found guilty in the first-degree murders of his 64-year-old disabled father Michael Martin, 51-year-old maternal uncle Ricky Andersen and 62-year-old Barry Swanson, an alarm system installer who was working at the family’s home in Corona at the time of the crimes, KTLA reported.
On the evening of Sept. 17, 2015, officers with the Corona Police Department were called to the family’s home at the 1000 block of Winthrop Drive.
Upon arrival, officers found that the three men had been beaten to death with a wooden baseball bat engraved with Brandon Martin’s name. Their bodies were discovered by the defendant’s cousin, who called 911, prosecutors said.
The defendant’s father and Swanson died at the scene, but Andersen lingered in a coma for two days before dying from his injuries, KTLA previously reported.
The attack occurred shortly after the defendant was released from a psychiatric care facility in Riverside where he had been held for two days for a mental health evaluation after making threats against his disabled father, officials said.
Swanson was at the home to install a security system because family members were concerned about what might happen when Martin left the facility, a neighbor said.
After Brandon Martin was released from the facility on the night of the murders, he went straight to his father’s house, arriving shortly after 6 p.m., authorities said.
The defendant grabbed a baseball bat inside the house and went on a rampage, pummeling all three men. After attacking the victims, Martin stole Swanson’s Ford Raptor pickup and hid out overnight.
The next day, Corona police spotted the pickup and Martin led them on a pursuit in Corona. He eventually bailed out of the truck and fled on foot, officials said in a news release.
In his attempt to evade officers, Martin broke into a home where a woman was taking a shower, officials said. The defendant tried to escape by jumping from a second-story window but encountered a police K9, which led to a brief struggle before he was taken into custody, prosecutors said. The woman at the home was not injured.
The Riverside jury deliberated less than a day on Wednesday before convicting Martin of three counts of murder with special circumstances, and further convicted him of one count each of auto theft, evading arrest, obstructing a peace officer and injuring a police service dog, KTLA reported.
The penalty phase of the trial is scheduled to begin Monday, Nov. 9, when the jury will ultimately decide whether Martin should be sentenced to death or life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Martin was chosen by the Tampa Bay Rays as the 38th overall pick in the 2011 Major League Baseball draft, officials said. He was released by the team in March 2015.
