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Remy’s former girlfriend, new court records shed light on tragic murder

Boston (MyFoxBoston.com) -- Jared Remy's mother texted Jennifer Martel about the emergency restraining order she took out against him, a friend of the victim's told police, according to newly filed court documents.

The new details are coming to light as the accused murderer's former girlfriend is speaking out, telling FOX Undercover she was in touch with the son of the famous Red Sox announcer right up until the day before the killing.

Former girlfriend Ryan McMahon was also one of Remy's victims, suffering abuse of her own at his hands, but still she says no one could have seen the murder coming.

McMahon makes clear she's not defending Remy, but she wrote to FOX 25 that despite his 2005 attack on her that "Jared and I remained very close throughout the years. Jared was my closest friend."

McMahon writes that she talked with him the day before Jennifer Martel's murder, after he left court for allegedly assaulting Martel.

"He called me first that Wednesday, telling me what happened. We spoke all night, the next day he wanted to meet up, I never heard from him, the next morning I get a call to turn the news on, and Jen was dead," she wrote.

A 2005 police report details the abuse Remy doled out to her. Police found her with blood coming out of her nose and a welt around her left eye. She told police that Remy grabbed her by the hair, threw her on the floor and continued kicking her in the stomach and face.

He was charged for the assault and, after pleading guilty, got no jail time. It was just one of the many court cases Remy faced over the years for assaults, many of them involving women.

In the most recent case, a decision to let him out of a police holding cell the night he was arrested for allegedly assaulting Martel is now coming under fire by some who say the state's entire bail system is flawed.

Bail Commissioner Judy Chambers let Remy walk after his arrest without having to post any bail – a decision made despite Remy's long history of domestic violence and Martel's seeking an emergency restraining order that night out of fear for her safety.

"Can you tell us why you released him without bail?" FOX Undercover reporter Mike Beaudet asked Chambers earlier this week.

"No, I'm not going to answer any questions," Chambers replied.

"Any regrets?" Beaudet asked.

"No," Chambers replied.

Chambers collected the standard $40 after Remy was released, a fee that can only be collected if defendants are released. Critics say the system gives bail commissioners and court clerks, who also can set bail, a financial incentive to let defendants walk.

Chambers has made more than $19,000 dollars in fees so far this year, more than any other bail commissioner in the state, records show.

"You've made a lot of money on those fees that the defendants pay. Did that have anything to do with this?" Beaudet asked her.

"Nothing to say," Martel replied.

Victims' advocate Laurie Myers, the founder of Community Voices, believes Chamber's decision was a dangerous one because Martel did not show up in court the next day to keep the restraining order in place.

"If he was kept in jail that night this case could have had a different outcome in court the next day. I truly believe that," she said. "How is the system going to protect her if they can't even keep him in the night that he assaulted her? How is the system going to protect her?"

A search warrant affidavit obtained by FOX Undercover suggests that not only did Remy contact Martel but his mother did as well.

A friend of Martel's told police that "(Martel) received text messages from both Jared Remy and Jared Remy's mother regarding the on-going argument and the temporary restraining order," according to a police affidavit filed in support of a search warrant.

The affidavit doesn't say what those text messages said, but police are likely going to find out if they haven't already. Among the items taken during the search were cell phones as well as computers, which police want to examine for any messages between Remy and his alleged victim.

The search warrant affidavit also says that a neighbor told police that Jared Remy – who has admitted steroid use in the past – was still taking steroids.