LAFOURCHE PARISH, La. — Craig Webre announced that a Thibodaux man has been charged with manslaughter in the death of his father.
Terry Martinez, 66, is accused in connection with the death of Dennis Martinez, 95, also of Thibodaux.
According to the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office, deputies began investigating the incident on January 6, 2026, after learning of an altercation that allegedly occurred two days earlier at the home where both men lived. Investigators say Terry Martinez struck his father, causing him to fall and suffer a serious head injury.
Dennis Martinez was airlifted to University Medical Center in New Orleans for treatment.
Following the investigation, detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Terry Martinez on charges of domestic abuse battery with serious bodily injury and cruelty to the infirm. He was taken into custody on January 14, 2026, in Terrebonne Parish and later booked into the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex.
On January 23, 2026, Dennis Martinez was released from the hospital and placed under hospice care at a nursing home in Thibodaux. He died two days later.
An autopsy conducted by the Jefferson Parish Coroner’s Office ruled the manner of death a homicide caused by a traumatic brain injury. As a result, detectives obtained an additional arrest warrant charging Terry Martinez with manslaughter.
Martinez, who was already in custody, was subsequently booked on the additional charge. Bond has been set at $400,000.
