Murder of Carla Bussard by Martha Farmer investigated on Snapped

Oxygen is re-airing the Snapped investigation into the murder of Carla Bussard, who was gunned down by her so-called friend, Martha Farmer, in an abandoned parking lot in Brunswick County, North Carolina.

In September 2006, 36-year-old Bussard was shot twice in the head in the parking lot of an abandoned seafood restaurant off Highway 211.

Her killer, Farmer, was a volunteer at a Brunswick County rescue squad and actually attended the crime scene as an EMS worker.

Farmer initially told the police that she had driven her friend to meet a man called “Wayne” at an intersection of Highways 211 and 214. She said Wayne and Bussard were meeting to discuss the purchase of a car.

The killer gave a detailed description of the fictional Wayne, who she claimed was tall and slender and had blond hair in a ponytail and a “scraggly” goatee beard. She described the man to an artist for a composite sketch.

However, the cops soon concluded that Farmer had been the one who killed Bussard. The investigators believe the motive for the murder was some kind of a love triangle; some reports claim Farmer believed her victim was having an affair with her husband, and other reports state that Farmer was involved with Bussard’s estranged husband.

Martha Farmer pleaded guilty to killing Carla Bussard

Farmer was facing a life sentence until she agreed to a plea deal. She pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping, and Judge Thomas Haigwood sentenced her to between 22 and 28 years.

Assistant District Attorney Lee Bollinger offered a victim impact statement on behalf of Bussard’s mother, Linda Lou Campbell, “She just talked about what a good person her daughter was. She had a lot of friends. The mother indicated she didn’t harbor any malice toward the defendant. She wants to move on with her life.”

A plea deal spared Martha Farmer a life sentence following Carla Bussard murder

Defense lawyer Rick Miller said the deal worked out well for everybody. “It brought closure to the victim’s family, and it got Martha out of the situation she was in – life without parole,” he said. Bussard’s family reportedly agreed and accepted the plea deal.

Farmer is currently incarcerated at the Anson Correctional Institution in Polkton, North Carolina. She has racked up 11 infractions during her time there. The killer was imprisoned at age 41 and is unlikely to see freedom until at least her mid-60s.

This episode of Snapped re-airs Friday at 6/5c on Oxygen.