Body cam video shows arrest of Ohio man charged with killing 3 young sons

Publish date: 2024-07-21

Police body camera footage shows the arrest of a man who was charged in connection with the deaths of his three sons, ages 7, 4, and 3.

Investigators saidChad Doerman lined up his sons at their home and shot them with a rifle.

***WARNING: This footage contains explicit content. Viewer discretion is advised.***

In the footage, officers approach Doerman with their guns drawn as he is sitting on a step outside the house when they arrive.

"They're dead, aren't they?" a woman is heard shouting in the background.

After officers pin him down in the ground cuff Doerman, he casually asks if he can stand up.

"It's kind of uncomfortable," he says. "I ain't going to run away."

Doerman was taken into custody without incident. He later appeared in court and appeared to be crying.

Bond was set at $20 million for Doerman. It is reportedly the highest bond in county history.

According to court documents, Doerman said he planned the murders for several months.

Authorities said his motive remains unclear.

This is by far the most sickening, horrifying crime I have seen. I can only imagine the terror these little boys felt and experienced as their father – their protector – was murdering them," said Clermont County Prosecutor Mark Tekulve.

The 34-year-old mother of the children was shot in the hand, apparently having grabbed Doerman's gun at some point in an attempt to save them. She then called 911 and told dispatchers "her babies had been shot."

It happened Thursday around 4:30 p.m. at the house in Monroe Township. The three boys were found in the yard, unresponsive. They died from their injuries at the scene.

Prosecutors said Friday that one of them had managed to flee into a field near the home, but that Doerman hunted him down and dragged him back to the property before killing him in front of witnesses.

This is the man that, every day, they woke up looking to for protection, love, guidance, a man they trust more than any other person on earth, a person they rely upon to keep them safe from harm. He was their world, he was their guardian, and he executed them in cold blood. We know that from his admission," said David Gast, criminal division chief of the Clermont County Prosecutor's Office.

Grief counselors were available on Friday morning at Monroe Elementary in the New Richmond Exempted Village School District, where the children attended school.

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