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A New Jersey insurance salesman, Robert O. Marshall, age 72, whose contract-for-hire murder of his wife became high profile after author Joe McGinniss wrote a best-selling true crime book about it, Blind Faith, that was made into a television miniseries, has been denied early release from prison.
Marshall, who is serving a life sentence, had argued that health problems and a model disciplinary record in prison should result in his early release.
However, New Jersey State Superior Court Judge Wendel E. Daniels said Marshall’s list of alleged health problems, ranging from diabetes to post-nasal drip, “does not rise to the level of severity to warrant release,” especially given the nature of his crime against his 42-year-old wife, Maria.
Marshall was originally sentenced to the death penalty. But he won a sentence reduction from Daniels in 2006 after a federal judge found that he hadn't received effective assistance of counsel during the penalty phase of his murder trial and the state decided not to retry the penalty phase of the case.
Marshall, who has been incarcerated since his arrest in December 1984 for his wife's slaying several months earlier, had sought a further sentence reduction, to 30 years, from Daniels, according to the newspaper.
He will be eligible for parole in 2014, after serving 30 years.
As presented in the McGinniss book, Marshall was convicted of hiring men from Louisiana to murder his wife during a purported robbery after he pulled off the Garden State Parkway into an isolated picnic area one night in September 1984.
Marshall was having an affair with another woman at the time.
The New York Times reported about the 2006 resentencing, noting that one of the Marshalls' three sons said he believes his father is innocent, while another said he believes his father is guilty. “I accept full responsibility that my actions led to her death,” Marshall said of his wife at the hearing, at which he also acknowledged having made “terrible mistakes," the Times reported. “I’m deeply sorry for my actions, but I can’t change the past," he continued. "However, I can change the future.”
[www.abajournal.com/news/article/12-07-2012/ 'Wife-Murderer Made Infamous By 'Blind Faith' Book And TV Movie Is Denied Early Release"; "Blind Faith", the book is a best-selling 1989 "true crime" novel by author Joe McGinniss, based upon the 1984 case in which American businessman Robert O. Marshall was convicted of the contract killing of his wife, Maria; In 1990, Blind Faith was adapted by screenwriter John Gay into an Emmy Award-nominated TV miniseries starring actors Robert Urich, Joanna Kerns, and Joa Spano; The Star Ledger (New Jersey), Saturday, May 13, 2006, "Prosecutor Won't Retry Penalty Phase of Marshall Case," by Maryann Spoto; articles.philly.com/February 13, 1990/ "For Roby Marshall, 'Blind Faith' Is A Reminder Of The Pain" by Kurt Heine; crime.about.com/05-14-2006/"Blind Faith" Killer Escapes Execution, by Charles Montaldo]
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