Flower Mound Man, Accused of Executing His Estranged Wife, Bonds Out of Jail

Linda Martin, a 55-year-old real estate agent, died at a stoplight in Southlake in late May.  Now the man accused of killing her, her estranged husband, is out on bond. 

Kenneth Martin, 52, posted his $100,000 bail at the Tarrant County Jail in Fort Worth where he was being held on a murder charge. The bond had been originally set at $250,000. It's unclear why the bond amount was lowered. Neither the 371st District Court of Tarrant County and the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office could be reached for comment.

Martin allegedly parked behind his estranged wife’s jeep at a red light on East Southlake Boulevard and got out of his vehicle with the intent to murder his estranged wife, according to police. Witnesses say Martin pulled out a handgun and shot Linda Martin in the head.

The pair had just left mediation for their divorce, several sources close to the couple say. Linda Martin died shortly after at Baylor Scott & White Medical Center in Grapevine.   
Kenneth Martin was arrested without incident at the scene. He was charged with murder and bail was set at $250,000. Many of Martin's friends thought the amount was set too low, and one former prosecutor told the Observer that his bail should have been set at $1 million given the fact that he’d taken a handgun with him to the mediation.

On Friday morning, Tarrant County Judge Mollee Westfall of the 371st District Court lowered the amount to $100,000. Martin posted bond shortly after the reduction. 

Martin filed for divorce from his estranged wife in Denton County on the same day her divorce case was dismissed in November 2015. His estranged wife later filed for a protective order in March, according to Denton County court documents.

Martin terrified his wife, friends of the family say. She even began carrying two guns and hired a protective service to help her, according to local news reports. Martin's estranged wife's friends told the Observer they feared what he would do if he were released since his estranged wife's lover still lives in the Flower Mound area.  

“He has nothing to lose at this point,” one of her friends who wished to remain anonymous said. “We want justice to be served. There’s a history of this individual not being right.”