A rookie prosecutor knocked one out of the park Wednesday, when his first felony case resulted in a guilty verdict and two life sentences for a habitual drunk driver.

Montgomery County Assistant District Attorney Kyle Crowl said, until the trial’s punishment phase, the jury had no idea 64-year-old Bobby Gene Martin had been arrested for Driving While Intoxicated 10 times. They only knew he was charged with DWI 3rd or More and Retaliation.

“You could see they were actually shocked that he’d had 10 DWIs and was still out and about driving around,” Crowl said.

The retaliation charge, Crowl said, was based on something many people don’t know about.

“Retaliation is when you act out and threaten harm to a public servant,” he said. “In this case, (Martin) had threatened to actually kill not only the deputy that arrested him, but also his wife, his children, his mom and several times told him he was going to beat him up.”

Crowl said Martin had done the same thing when he was arrested for DWI in Montgomery County back in 1999. He told that deputy he was going to “kill him and everything he ever loved.”

“I think that resonated with the jury that if no matter what he does, if he ever gets out of jail, he’s going to do it again,” Crowl said.

Martin’s first DWI arrest occurred in 1981, so he had been driving drunk for over 30 years.

Apparently, he has other issues as well. A Montgomery County jailer testified that Martin had threatened him and went on a racist rant. The jailer said it was something he had to learn to live with as a jailer, but Martin stood out in his mind as “one of the more intoxicated individuals, and one of the more racist individuals” he’s had to deal with.

Martin, who lived in northeast Houston at the time of his latest arrest, is 64 and will be 80 before he is eligible for parole. Crowl said the parole board will take into account that he had two life sentences, even though by law they had to run concurrently.

“Hopefully this defendant will never be driving around the streets of Montgomery County,” he said.

Crowl has only been with the DA’s office for a year and a half, and Martin was his first felony case. After securing the maximum sentence on both charges, Crowl said of his big win, “I’m hoping to keep it going.”

*********************7 OF THE DWI’S WERE IN HARRIS COUNTY**********



134529701010 – The State of Texas vs. MARTIN, BOBBY GENE (Court 232)

134529701010-3Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

4/25/2012 | 4/26/2012

232

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 6/12/2012

EVADING ARREST/DETENTION W/VEHICLE (F)

6/12/2012

120958401010-3Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY

3/30/2009 | 4/1/2009

183

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 10/29/2009

$60,000.00

DWI 2ND OFFENDER BAC .08 (M)

10/29/2009

073113701010-3Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

8/26/1996 | 8/26/1996

262

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 8/27/1996

$20,000.00

DWI THIRD (F)

8/27/1996

067491401010-3Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY G.

9/17/1993 | 9/18/1993

208

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 10/19/1993

$5,000.00

DWI THIRD (F)

10/19/1993

920061701010-2Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

1/5/1992 | 1/5/1992

4

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 1/6/1992

$1,000.00

DWI 2ND (M)

1/6/1992

881602201010-2Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

5/4/1988 | 5/4/1988

1

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 5/26/1988

$1,000.00

ASSAULT-BODILY INJURY (M)

5/26/1988

881602101010-2Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

5/4/1988 | 5/4/1988

1

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 5/26/1988

$1,000.00

CRIM MISCH-$20-200 (M)

5/26/1988

046542001010-3Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

12/20/1986 | 12/20/1986

176

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 6/11/1987

$2,000.00

DWI THIRD (F)

6/11/1987

06217270101A-4Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

7/2/1981 |

7

Disposed(D)

$400.00

062172701010-2Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

6/27/1981 | 10/8/1982

7

Disposed(D)

Disposed(DISP) 10/8/1982

$800.00

DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED (M)

10/8/1982

060780501010-2Complete(C)

MARTIN, BOBBY GENE

1/13/1981 | 1/13/1981

5

Disposed(D)

Found Guilty(GILT) 1/16/1981

$400.00

DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED (M)

1/20/1981