A commercial airline pilot was arraigned Wednesday on three counts of murder stemming from the brutal 2015 killings of three of his neighbors, including two whose bodies were found burned beyond recognition in a torched car.
Christian R. "Kit" Martin, 51, a former Army Ranger major and a pilot for the American Airlines subsidiary PSA Airlines, made his first appearance in Christian County Justice Center in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. He was arrested on May 11 at the Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville and pulled off an airplane full of passengers just before it was set for takeoff.
Martin, wearing an orange jail jumpsuit with the words "Christian County Jail" written on the back, was brought into the courtroom shackled and stood in front of the bench of Judge John L. Atkins to be arraigned in the killings of Calvin and Pamela Phillips and their neighbor, Edward Dansereau.
Martin's attorney, Michael Thompson, entered pleas of not guilty on behalf of Martin and waived a formal reading of the charges.
In addition to the three counts of murder, Martin was arraigned on charges of first-degree burglary, first-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence. If convicted of the charges, he could face the death penalty.