Attorneys for Chad Doerman, the Clermont County man accused of shooting and killing his three sons in June 2023, have requested the court take the death penalty off the table due to Doerman's "serious mental illness" on the day of the killings.
Doerman's attorneys filed the motion in conjunction with a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, saying two expert psychologists had determined Doerman had a "severe mental disease" on the day he allegedly gunned down his three young sons, ages 3, 4 and 7. The psychologists' evaluations differed though on Doerman's "appreciation of the wrongfulness of his actions" that day.
Background
Doerman faces nine counts of aggravated murder, all with capital specifications as prosecutors have made it clear they are seeking the death penalty in this case. In their motion, lawyers for Doerman say that, should a jury convict Doerman of aggravated murder, their client is aware that he may receive a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
"Executing the seriously mentally ill is cruel and unusual punishment in violation of both the Ohio and the United States Constitutions," the motion reads. "Persons suffering from [serious mental illness] at the time of the alleged commission of the offense are not morally culpable to the same extent as others."
A hearing on the motion will be held on May 3. Doerman's attorneys have agreed to submit an expert's report supporting the mental illness claim by June 3.
Read the motion below:
Read the motion below:
Background
Doerman is accused of shooting and killing his three young sons, ages 3, 4 and 7, on June 15, 2023. He faces nine counts of aggravated murder, eight counts of kidnapping and four counts of felonious assault.
Clermont County investigators said Doerman originally confessed to the murders soon after his arrest, saying he planned the murders, lining up his three children and executing them with a rifle. Prosecutors said one of the boys tried to run away into an open field before Doerman chased him down, dragged him back to the house and killed him.
Sheriff’s deputies said they arrived on scene to find 32-year-old Chad Doerman sitting outside the home. The three boys who had been shot were in the yard. First responders practiced “life-saving measures” but were unsuccessful. All three children died at the scene. The boys’ mother, 34, was also outside the home with a gunshot wound to the hand. She was transported to UC Medical Center for treatment where Sheriff Robert Leahy said he informed her that her three sons had died from their gunshot wounds.
Prosecutors said Doerman initially confessed to the murders, but he later pleaded not guilty to the charges in front of a judge.
Doerman remains incarcerated at the Clermont County Jail on a $20 million bond. His trial is scheduled for July.
