Detective questioned Modesto mother about son’s death months before she, 4 others killed

A detective testified Thursday about questioning Dr. Amanda Crews about her 2-year-old son, Christopher Ripley, who suffered fatal injuries while in the care of Martin Martinez. The physician was questioned several months before she was found dead inside a Modesto home along with four other people.

Authorities say Martinez, 31, is the lone suspect in the July 18 deaths of the five people. But he has been formally charged only with murder and child abuse in Christopher’s Oct. 2, 2014, death. The boy suffered a head injury Sept. 30 while home alone with Martinez and died at a hospital two days later.

Testimony in the preliminary hearing resumed Thursday morning. At the conclusion of the hearing, the judge will decide whether there’s enough evidence for Martinez to stand trial.

Modesto police Detective Craig Grogan questioned Crews several days after Christopher’s death. She was already engaged to Martinez, who was saving up money to buy her an engagement ring. She had learned she was pregnant sometime around Easter 2014. She told the detective it was a planned pregnancy, because Martinez wanted to be a father.

Grogan testified that Crews said Martinez had positive relationship with her children, Christopher and Elizabeth. Their agreement as a couple was that Crews would be responsible for most of Elizabeth’s care, while Martinez was responsible for caring for Christopher.

The mother spoke to the detective about bruises, a black eye and a cut lower lip Christopher had suffered previously. Crews said bruises found on the left side of Christopher’s face appeared immediately after she saw the boy accidentally hit his face against a wall at their home. She told the detective Martinez was home at the time, but he wasn’t near the child when he was injured.

Grogan testified that Crews said the toddler suffered the black eye after a fall in a bathtub at his father’s home.

Christopher suffered the cut lip when he was potty training at home, the boy’s mother told Grogan. She said the boy called for her, and she hurried to find him on the floor just outside the bathroom crying. She said Martinez soon after approached the injured child from behind her.

There was no indication from Crews that Martinez was near the child when he was injured. She was in the kitchen cooking when she heard the child call for her. But she didn’t have a view of the bathroom from where she was.

Crews took photos of the boy’s cut lip to show to a medical colleague, who agreed with Crews that the boy did not require stitches or further treatment at a medical facility. The mother believed the boy’s wound could heal on its own, according to the detective.

Grogan also testified about an alleged domestic violence incident in early May 2014 at Crews’ home on Pasadena Lane in central Modesto. The prosecution is introducing the evidence presumably to show what authorities believe is a pattern of violent behavior.

The detective testified that the couple’s argument escalated when Martinez tried to leave the home and Crews blocked his exit. Martinez pushed her into a bathroom door and a struggle ensued. Martinez, in an audio recording for Crews’ twin sister, explained that he was defending himself when he pinned Crews down to a bed by gripping her neck.

Grogan testified that the argument began when couple had just returned on a drive from Idaho to Modesto. Crews wanted to stop to eat in Sacramento, and Martinez refused. That dispute sparked the argument.

The detective said the couple was returning from a hospital where Martinez’s brother had just died. The brother had committed suicide, and spoke to Martinez on the phone as he prepared to hang himself. Martinez explained in the recording that the traumatic nature of his brother’s death led to the argument with Crews.

Grogan said in court that Crews and Martinez reconciled a day after the alleged domestic violence incident. The detective testified that Crews said she was primarily at fault for the fight. Police did not investigate the incident, because it was never reported.

Crews, 38, was found dead in July at her home on Nob Hill Court in east Modesto. Also found dead at the two-story house were her daughters, 6-month-old Rachael and 6-year-old Elizabeth; Martin Martinez’s mother, Anna Brown Romero, 57; and a 5-year-old girl believed to be Martinez’s niece. While authorities have said Martinez is the suspect in the deaths, they have not said when they will file charges.

This story was originally published September 17, 2015 at 12:38 PM with the headline "Detective questioned Modesto mother about son’s death months before she, 4 others killed."