Martin to serve 55 years for Rehoboth bar shooting

A Millsboro man will serve 55 years in prison for shooting a man in February 2022 at Coastal Taproom near Rehoboth Beach after an argument over a pool game.

Edward Martin, 49, was found guilty in October of second-degree murder, first-degree reckless endangerment and possession of a deadly weapon for the shooting of 41-year-old Arrick Richards. Martin was originally slated to be sentenced in January, but his sentencing was moved to March due to scheduling issues. He was facing a minimum of 30 years in prison. Martin’s attorneys intend to appeal the verdict to the Delaware Supreme Court.

A 12-person jury convicted Martin after seven-and-a-half hours of deliberation. The shooting was captured on Coastal Taproom’s surveillance cameras, so there was no question that Martin shot Richards, but what was up for debate was whether Martin intentionally caused Richards’ death or acted recklessly but not intentionally. The jury had the option of convicting Martin on first-degree murder charges or the lesser included offenses of second-degree murder or reckless manslaughter. As part of its deliberations, the jury had to consider Martin’s state of mind. In convicting him of second-degree murder, the jury determined that Martin acted in a reckless manner in causing Richards’ death.

Martin was found guilty of four counts of first-degree reckless endangerment, four counts of possession of a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony and one count of carrying a concealed deadly weapon. Each count of reckless endangerment was tied to the four people that were around Martin when he shot Richards: Laci Richards, Arrick’s wife; Christie Martin, Edward’s wife; Rico Stringfellow, the then-boyfriend of Laci Richards’ friend Jordyn Harris; and Raymond Catalinas, a bystander in the bar that night. 

During the trial, state prosecutors Martin Cosgrove and Amanda Nyman argued that Martin had been drinking at two different locations, carrying a 9mm semiautomatic pistol in his pocket. Martin did not have a concealed-carry permit for the gun. 

Martin and his wife Christie had been playing pool at Coastal Taproom when Richards, his wife Laci, and mother-in-law, Vicki Orris, arrived after 12:30 a.m. About 1:12 a.m., Richards and Martin began chirping with one another about the pool game. Their interaction became more tense, and Cosgrove and Nyman argued that it was Martin who was escalating things. Five minutes after they first encountered one another, Martin shot Richards in the chest. Richards died shortly thereafter.

Lead detective Stephen Yeich testified that after the shooting, Martin walked out of the bar, waited in the parking lot for his wife and fled the premises. In the time after the shooting, Martin tossed the gun along Long Neck Road, and hid his extra ammo and holster in a culvert in front of his house. Martin was arrested after 3 a.m., Feb. 20, 2022. 

Martin took the stand in his own defense and said he saw another patron, later identified as Mack Jean-Francois, flash a gun. He said he had seen Richards and Jean-Francois interact earlier that night. Martin testified that he thought Richards had a gun when he shot him. Martin said it was not until he later saw surveillance footage from Coastal Taproom of the shooting that he realized he had shot an unarmed man.