Delores Martes Jackson in Photos: Her Life Alongside Tito Jackson and Her Sons

When Tito Jackson passed away in September 2024, public attention inevitably swung back toward the woman who grounded him through the Jackson 5's commercial peak. Delores "Dee Dee" Martes was not merely a peripheral figure in music history. She was the matriarch of an influential branch of pop royalty, the mother of 3T, and the emotional anchor for her three sons during their formative years. Archival photographs from the 1970s and 1980s capture a woman navigating the blinding orbit of Motown fame while quietly constructing a stable childhood for her boys. As detailed in a retrospective yahoo.com Report on the couple's relationship history, Dee Dee’s presence helped balance the chaotic machinery of international celebrity.

Behind the glossy magazine spreads and red-carpet appearances, her life carried profound grace alongside unresolved heartbreak. Her sudden death in 1994 stopped the Jackson family in its tracks. Today, decades after the legal battles concluded, her legacy lives on through the creative output of Taj, Taryll, and TJ Jackson, as well as an active philanthropic foundation created in her name.

📌 Quick Summary:

• The Marriage: High school sweethearts Delores Martes and Tito Jackson married in June 1972, remaining together for sixteen years until their 1988 split.
• The Turning Point: Martes died on August 27, 1994; what was initially labeled an accidental pool drowning became a second-degree murder conviction against businessman Donald Bohana in 1998.
• The Aftermath: Uncle Michael Jackson stepped in to mentor 3T, whose debut album Brotherhood went multi-platinum in Europe, channeling their grief into creative triumph.

The High School Romance Behind Tito Jackson’s First Marriage

Tito Jackson met Delores Martes at Fairfax High School in Los Angeles. At the time, the Jackson 5 were rapidly evolving from Gary, Indiana prodigies into an international phenomenon. While his brothers often made headlines for their turbulent public romances, Tito gravitated toward Martes’s quiet demeanor and grounded perspective. The pair married in June 1972. Tito was eighteen years old; Delores was seventeen.

Old family photographs from their early married life showcase a stark departure from the glitz of stadium tours. Tito and Dee Dee maintained a low profile relative to the rest of the Motown circle. She deliberately chose private life over spotlight chasing. As Tito’s brothers chased solo careers and public profiles, Martes focused on raising their three sons: Toriano Adaryll II ("Taj"), born in 1973; Taryll Adren, born in 1975; and Tito Joe ("TJ"), born in 1978.

Their sixteen-year marriage withstood the rigorous touring schedules and crushing financial scrutiny of the Jackson empire before dissolving in 1988. Despite the divorce, friends and family consistently noted that Martes and Tito maintained mutual respect, co-parenting their boys with genuine affection.

Motherhood, Encinco Compound Memories, and Raising 3T

In archival snapshots from the 1980s, Dee Dee appears surrounded by sheet music, guitars, and her three sons practicing harmonies in home studios. Rather than relying entirely on nannies or external handlers, she managed her sons' day-to-day routines personally. She drove them to sports practices, sat through long vocal sessions, and pushed them toward instrumental mastery.

By the early 1990s, the three brothers had banded together to form the R&B/pop group 3T. They wrote their own material, played instruments, and built multi-part vocal arrangements. Martes served as their earliest critic and fierce advocate. She shielded them from exploitative industry contracts, insisting that their creative independence remain untouched.

She did not live to see their debut album reach record stores. Her sudden passing stripped them of their primary protector right as their musical careers prepared to launch.

The 1994 Investigation and the Bohana Murder Trial

On August 27, 1994, Los Angeles first responders answered a midnight emergency call at the Ladera Heights residence of Donald Bohana, an entrepreneur and former insurance executive. Emergency personnel found the 39-year-old Martes unresponsive at the bottom of Bohana's backyard swimming pool. Bohana told authorities that Martes drowned accidentally while swimming with him late that evening.

Her family rejected that explanation immediately. Dee Dee Martes could not swim, harbored a lifelong fear of deep water, and avoided swimming pools altogether. Furthermore, the Los Angeles County coroner’s autopsy uncovered severe blunt force trauma: nineteen distinct cuts and bruises across her face, head, and torso, accompanied by fractured cartilage in her neck. Investigators determined that her physical trauma was entirely inconsistent with a casual dip in a pool.

Taj, Taryll, and TJ rallied legal resources alongside Tito to demand deeper scrutiny. In 1996, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office formally charged Donald Bohana with murder. During the 1998 trial, prosecutors established that Bohana was facing financial collapse and pressured Martes for a substantial loan to bail out his failing business. When she refused, a physical altercation ensued, resulting in her asphyxiation and submersion. The jury convicted Bohana of second-degree murder, handing down a prison sentence of 15 years to life.

Michael Jackson’s Mentorship of 3T After the Loss

The sudden loss threatened to end 3T before their music ever left the studio. Devastated by their mother's murder, the brothers temporarily shelved their demos. That was when their uncle, Michael Jackson, intervened. He brought his nephews under his direct artistic and financial wing, signing them to his MJJ Music imprint distributed via Epic Records.

Michael shielded the young men from intrusive press scrutiny, funded their production sessions, and joined them in the studio. He contributed vocals to their hit track "Why" and supported the writing process for "Anything." When Brotherhood debuted in late 1995, it scored massive international success, eventually shifting more than 3 million copies across the globe and generating six top-ten singles in the United Kingdom.

Taj Jackson recalled in later interviews that his uncle provided safe artistic territory when the family felt unmoored. Michael insisted that their pain belonged in the music, transforming their grief into a lasting tribute to their mother.

The Dee Dee Jackson Foundation and Her Living Presence in 2026

Rather than letting their mother's memory fade into court transcripts, Taj, Taryll, and TJ established the Dee Dee Jackson Foundation (DDJF). The non-profit organization provides support networks for individuals experiencing traumatic loss, offering music therapy programs, grief literacy resources, and youth development grants.

The foundation hosts workshops in inner-city schools and community centers, teaching young people how to navigate sudden bereavement through songwriting and creative expression. The charity's signature initiative, Music Heals, supplies equipment and certified music therapists to pediatric facilities across California.

Online communities run by Jackson family fans regularly curate archival film rolls and historical photography of Dee Dee. Fans see in those photographs the same poised, steady eyes that her sons carry today. Taj often notes on social platforms that the foundation ensures her identity is framed by her generosity, not her final hours.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: How long were Tito Jackson and Delores Martes married?
A1: Tito Jackson and Delores Martes were married for sixteen years. They wed in June 1972 after meeting as high school sweethearts and divorced in 1988, remaining active co-parents to their three sons.

Q2: What was the outcome of the Donald Bohana trial?
A2: Donald Bohana was convicted of second-degree murder in November 1998. The court sentenced him to 15 years to life in California state prison after prosecutors proved Martes died of asphyxiation and blunt-force trauma during a dispute over money.

Q3: What role did Delores Martes play in the success of 3T?
A3: Dee Dee served as 3T's earliest manager, booking rehearsals, funding early demos, and instilling musical discipline. Following her death, her sons dedicated their multi-platinum debut album Brotherhood entirely to her memory.

The Enduring Imprint of Dee Dee Jackson

History tends to reduce the lives of women connected to famous families to brief bullet points between record sales and media scandals. Delores Martes Jackson defied that simplification. Archival photographs capture a woman of steady character who kept her children shielded from the darker excesses of show business.

Her sudden death forced the Jackson family into an agonizing public legal battle, yet the family converted that tragedy into creative and philanthropic endurance. From the multi-platinum tracks of 3T to the therapeutic outreach of the Dee Dee Jackson Foundation, her influence remains firmly woven into the Jackson family’s cultural history.