American Airlines pilot pleads NOT guilty to the 2015 murders of three people

The American Airlines pilot who was arrested for a triple murder minutes before he was to fly a plane out of Louisville airport pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to a slew of charges that could see him face the death penalty.

Christian 'Kit' Martin ambled nonchalantly into court in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, shackled at the waist and ankles. He had been due to appear via video from his temporary home in the jail across the street from the courtroom, but technical problems led to Judge John Atkins calling him in person.

Martin, dressed in an orange jail jumpsuit and gray Nike sneakers, did not speak during the brief hearing.

Martin, a former Army major denies killing three neighbors, Calvin Phillips, 59, his wife Pamela Phillips, 57, and Ed Dansereau, 63 in the small Kentucky town of Pembroke in 2015.

Calvin had been having an affair with Martin’s wife, Joan Harmon, and Martin killed Pam and Dansereau in a twisted plot to cover his tracks, neighbors believe.

Family and friends of the victims were at the hearing expecting to see Martin on a screen. Instead he walked just feet from them, looking them straight in the eye.

Afterwards, the Phillipses' s son Matt said: 'I don't know what was in his mind this morning. My hope is that the case can go forward in a timely fashion. My grandparents are both 83. They deserve to see justice for their son.'

American Airlines pilot Christian Martin, 51, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to the 2015 murders of three people

American Airlines pilot Christian Martin, 51, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to the 2015 murders of three people

In November 2015, authorities found Calvin Phillips (left), 59, shot to death in the cellar of his home. His wife, Pamela Phillips (right), 58, was found a few miles away in a cornfield inside her burned out car

In November 2015, authorities found Calvin Phillips (left), 59, shot to death in the cellar of his home. His wife, Pamela Phillips (right), 58, was found a few miles away in a cornfield inside her burned out car

The couple's neighbor, Edward Dansereau (pictured), 63, was also found in the burning vehicle alongside Pamela

The couple's neighbor, Edward Dansereau (pictured), 63, was also found in the burning vehicle alongside Pamela 

The couple's son Matt Phillips appeared in court today hand-in-hand with his grandmother Margaret Phillips

The couple's son Matt Phillips appeared in court today hand-in-hand with his grandmother Margaret Phillips

Prosecutors say Martin shot Calvin Phillips with a .45 caliber pistol on November 18, 2015 and used a different weapon, a .22 caliber gun, to kill Pam Phillips and the couple's neighbor, country musician Ed Dansereau.

Christian 'Kit' Martin was arrested as he was about to pilot a flight full of passengers on May 11

Christian 'Kit' Martin was arrested as he was about to pilot a flight full of passengers on May 11 

He allegedly dragged Cal Phillips's body to the basement of Phillips's house in Pembroke, Kentucky, and tried to burn it down. He drove the bodies of Pam Phillips and Dansereau to a remote road in her car and set it on fire.

The damage was so complete that police initially thought only one body was in the car and they couldn't tell whether it was male or female. They couldn't even make out the make or model of the vehicle.

Martin, 51, is charged with three counts of murder, two of burglary, two of tampering with evidence, one of arson and one of attempted arson. Prosecutors have not yet decided whether to seek the death penalty. Kentucky has only executed one person in the last 20 years.

Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear said he believes the state has 'a very compelling case' against Martin.

The twists and turns of Kit Martin's case captivated people in southwestern Kentucky even before he was arrested an hour before he was due to pilot American Airlines Flight 5523 from Louisville's Muhammad Ali Airport to Charlotte early on May 11.

The former Army Major thought he was married for a decade to Joan Harmon. It was only later he discovered Harmon was already married when they tied the knot and so the marriage was never legal.

Harmon was charged with bigamy in 2014 and given five years pre-trial diversion.

Christian 'Kit' Martin was major in the Army Rangers

'Kit's real downfall was meeting Joan,' his former lawyer Tucker Richardson told DailyMail.com. 'She said she would ruin his life and, boy, has she succeeded

Martin's former lawyer said his 'downfall' was meeting his wife Joan (right). He has been accused of murdering three people in 2015 and was arrested in Kentucky

This is the home where Christian Martin allegedly murdered Calvin Phillips in Pembroke, Kentucky, U.S. May 19, 2019.

This is the home where Christian Martin allegedly murdered Calvin Phillips in Pembroke, Kentucky, U.S. May 19, 2019.

This affidavit signed by Martin just two months before the murder shows his belief that his wife Joan lied to him and her two ex husbands

This affidavit signed by Martin just two months before the murder shows his belief that his wife Joan lied to him and her two ex husbands 

'Kit's real downfall was meeting Joan,' his former lawyer Tucker Richardson told DailyMail.com. 'She said she would ruin his life and, boy, has she succeeded.

'This man is an American hero. He retired from the Army and founded a successful business chartering helicopters, Then, after 9/11 he quits and signs up again and does three tours of duty in Iraq.'

Martin told conservative blogger Bob McCarty that Harmon told him in 2014: 'If you divorce me, I will ruin your career. I will ruin your life. I know how to do it.'

'Then she started to list all the threats she was going to do. 'I'm going to tell them you are abusive,' Martin continued in the interview 11 weeks before the murders.

He told McCarty that Harmon was having an affair with a neighbor around that time. Although he did not identify that neighbor, McCarty confirmed to DailyMail.com that it was Cal Phillips, one of the murdered men.

Martin said when his 'wife' threatened him, in early 2014,  he insisted on calling the police who told him he had to leave his house in Pembroke, just across the street from Dansereau's house, and get a hotel room. By the time he could get back in, two weeks later, he claims Harmon and Phillips had stolen everything.  

'She and her boyfriend stripped it of everything they could carry, all my family heirlooms, documents, things of that nature,' he told McCarty.

Soon after, Martin found himself the subject of a court martial, brought on by evidence provided by Harmon and Phillips. The murders occurred just two weeks before the scheduled date for the hearing December, 2015.

Calvin Phillips (left with wife Pam and Matt as a child) was to give evidence against Kit Martin at a court martial where he was eventually acquitted of child sex abuse charges but found guilty of mishandling classified information

Calvin Phillips (left with wife Pam and Matt as a child) was to give evidence against Kit Martin at a court martial where he was eventually acquitted of child sex abuse charges but found guilty of mishandling classified information

'I don't know what was in his mind this morning,' the Phillips' son Matt said of Martin after the court hearing. 'My hope is that the case can go forward in a timely fashion'

'I don't know what was in his mind this morning,' the Phillips' son Matt said of Martin after the court hearing. 'My

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