Pine River Man Convicted of Murder

Jurors took an hour and fifteen minutes to find 20-year old Matthew Michael Martin guilty of stabbing and shooting 15-year old Mollie Rice of Backus last August. Cass County jurors heard testimony for five days last week and closing arguments on Monday. Judge John P. Smith immediately sentenced Martin to life in prison without parole. County Attorney Christopher Strandlie told the Brainerd Dispatch this was the outcome he and the Rice family had hoped for.