The Misery Machine - The Case of the Doerman Family Massacre

Starting point is 00:00:00 What are you doing, man? Are you copying all this? Can I roll over? I ain't gonna hurt you. I ain't gonna hurt nobody. You got anything on you? No, I ain't got nothing, man. Phone, that's it. I'm mad, I ain't nothing.

Starting point is 00:00:16 Just make sure that dog don't come out. I don't think it'll bite you. Just don't reach for him or try to grab him and pet him. Wrong. He won't bite you. What's going on, man? Nothing? Can I stand up?

Starting point is 00:00:24 It's kind of uncomfortable. I'm going to get you here. I ain't going to do nothing. You can do whatever you want. This is 32-year-old Chad Dorman. Just minutes after executing his three young sons, seven-year-old Clayton, four-year-old Hunter, and three-year-old Chase. You've likely seen this case in the news recently. The boys were murdered just one year ago,

Starting point is 00:00:45 and Chad pled guilty on August 3, 2024. So, who is this monster, and how does his family end up at the center of a horrific slaughter? Well, if you ask anyone in Chad's life prior to June 15, 2023, including his wife Laura, he wasn't a monster. Chad and Laura lived in Monroe Township, Ohio. This is a suburb of Cincinnati with about 7,500 residents at the time of the 2020 census. Monroe Township is east of Cincinnati, right on the Ohio, Kentucky border. It's best known for its large fireworks display on Independence Day. Chad, Laura, and their four children live together at 1965 Laurel Lindale Road. Their modest home sat on three acres of land and cost about $70,000 when they purchased it in 2016. This would have been right around the time that their oldest child,

Starting point is 00:01:39 Clayton, was born. It is unclear when Chad and Laura were married, but one source noted that Chad had been in the life of Laura's daughter since a very young age. It had been about seven at the time they bought their home together. Their house was a home clearly set up for a gaggle of happy children with a trampoline and an above-ground pool in their yard. Family had a small camper parked outside their home suggesting that they enjoyed spending time outdoors together. There were toys and tricycles strewn all across the yard. The family all loved baseball and neighbors would regularly see them all outside playing together. In fact, Chad coached the baseball team for his oldest son Clayton. He also loved to drive around their yard and go-carts or help their dad fix his car. In the summer of

Starting point is 00:02:22 In 2020, Laura's daughter had just finished eighth grade and would soon be a freshman at the new Richmond High School. Her brother Clayton had been enrolled in kindergarten earlier that year, but had been withdrawn for reasons that are unclear. At seven years old, Clayton was already an avid baseball player, but he didn't just love sports. He also loved Legos, he was super funny and he loved to joke around. He was also incredibly kind and loved to give gifts to people that were important to him in his life. He loved to sing, and his dog, Gatlin was his best friend. Clayton's younger brother Hunter

Starting point is 00:02:56 was four years old. He was also obsessed with baseball. He loved catching frogs at the creek and adored his mom and sister. They said that every day he would call them pretty girls. And then there was Chase just three years old. He loved dinosaurs and watching

Starting point is 00:03:12 his brothers play baseball. As the youngest, he was also the snuggle bug of the family and loved to cuddle with his mom. A friend of the family remembered that the boys were like a little pack, always doing everything together. Chad had grown up in the same area that he stayed to raise his family as an adult. Went to Amelia High School, and based on his age, we guess he would have graduated around 2009 or 2010.

Starting point is 00:03:38 Amelia High School has since closed and was replaced by West Claremont High School. At the time of our story, Chad had a pretty clean criminal record. He had a few traffic violations and one dismissed charge from 2010. He had been charged with DV against his father, Keith. Dorman after allegedly choking him. Those charges were later dropped and his dad said it was just a misunderstanding. There was no record of any DV reports between Chad and Laura or any disturbances whatsoever that involved the police at their address. Chad was now a family man who appeared to be working construction. He was a member of the insulators union, so we assume he was installing insulation as part of a

Starting point is 00:04:14 crew. There would later be mixed reports of Chad's general personality, temperament, and behavior prior to the murders. Chad's father's father, Father Keith described him as a super dad, always laughing and joking with his boys, or herself, so that nothing would have made her believe that Chad was capable of harming them. However, neighbors in the area so they often heard the parents fighting. When neighbors said he was angry every single day, always shouting at his wife and kids. Another friend of Chad's claim that he had a temper like a bomb just waiting to explode. Prior to the additional information being released after Chad pled guilty,

Starting point is 00:04:50 there was some speculation that perhaps Laura was attempting to leave Chad. Some sources said that Laura had spoken to her daughter a few months prior about his temper. One of those sources, she acknowledged that Chad was causing problems with the neighbors while he was drunk. If his drinking continued, she would have to divorce him. Some even speculated that he returned home that day to find her attempting to leave, which is what triggered the incident. But there is not any current evidence confirming either of those theories at this time. In fact, according to the report released by the report released by the report,

Starting point is 00:05:20 prosecution on August 5th, 24, there was no abnormal behavior in the week prior to the incident that would have been a warning sign about what was going to happen. It's also important to note that the town Chad lived in was already on high alert for suspicious behavior. Early 2023, there had been another shooting in Monroe Township. At the end of February, a local woman had shot her husband, her father, and her 14-year-old son, and her 20-year-old daughter. She then removed herself from the earth. Apparently, the family was facing eviction due to financial hardship. Her daughter survived the family annihilation attempt, and the town was still reeling from this tragedy in June when our story takes place.

Starting point is 00:05:59 Now, this case was stressful enough to research. And if you're feeling the same about listening to it, then let's take a little break to unwind with a game we've been using to blow off steam lately. This video has been brought to you by Screw Jam, a challenging puzzle game where you remove and match screws to progress through levels, testing your problem-solving and strategic thinking skills. Screw Jam is easy to learn but hard to master. Enjoy exciting in-game events where you complete levels, earn points, and unlock rewards like boosters, coins, and hearts.

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Starting point is 00:06:46 If you download Screw Jam using the link or by scanning the QR code, you will receive three hours of infinite life and 100 coins. With a rating of 4.7 on the app store, you're bound to love it. Download Screw Jam now and dive into a brain teasing journey. Challenge yourself and sharpen your strategic thinking skills while having fun. Click the link in my description or scan the QR code on screen. Thanks and back to the episode. On Saturday, June 10th, 2023, five days prior to the incident. The families seem to have a very normal, even fun day.

Starting point is 00:07:16 Chad took his boys to a local dirt track to watch some races. Since he was having a boys' day, he encouraged Laura and her daughter to go shopping and have their own girls' day. The following day, he took the boys fishing. Chad would later claim that he was struggling to sleep all through the week. However, Laura did not recall any challenges with sleep or changes of behavior during those days. On Monday, he went to work as normal. His co-workers and direct supervisor were interviewed and,

Starting point is 00:07:46 attested that there was nothing strange about his behavior that day. The same was said about Tuesday, June 13th. Chad went to work as normal and returned home that night to fix the headlight on his vehicle. The first indication of strange behavior came on the morning of Wednesday, June 14th. Chad was a very early riser, often getting up around 4 a.m. to get ready for work. On that day, he woke up his stepdaughter before he left. This was very strange as typically he would not wake anyone before work. He woke her up and apologized to her. He said he was sorry for, and I quote,

Starting point is 00:08:24 Anything I have ever done to hurt you. It is unclear if she relayed this interaction to anyone else in the households. Chad left her work after that and continued to have another normal day. After work, he coached Clayton's baseball team during a game. The whole family came to watch Clayton and Chad on the field. Some observers would later note that he seemed a little distracted then. night, but nothing was alarming enough to follow up on. On Thursday, June 15th, Chad got up and went to work as normal, arriving at around 7 a.m. Phone records would later show that on his way to work, he searched for a song called Happy and Hell by Colt Ford. The song talks about living with the devil while being in love

Starting point is 00:09:05 with someone other than their partner. It reflects on a feeling of getting boxed in, feeling confused and hopeless. That morning, Chad's boss noticed that he was acting strangely, but not strange enough to make him call the police or even to Laura to see if everything was okay. However, Chad ended up leaving work around 9.30 a.m. It's unclear if this was approved by his boss or if he just left unannounced. At some point that morning, he called his mother to say he was having confusing thoughts, as he put it. She suggested that he go to the little clinic inside their Kroger. Those of you who do not have that chain near you, Kroger is a grocery store, but like many supermarkets, they have a pharmacy with a clinic inside. 9.42 a.m. Chad arrived at the

Starting point is 00:09:46 the Kroger. He entered the building and stopped in the vitamin and supplement aisle and stared at the shelves for a few minutes, and walked into the little clinic and leaned on the counter where a receptionist would typically be. In the camera footage we have seen, it appears that the clinic is empty. There is no one waiting in chairs and no one at the desk. Chad leans on the counter for just over a minute and a half. After no one comes to speak to him, he turns around and leaves a store without making any purchases or speaking to anyone. Seems that he's stopped one more time on the way home to buy a 16-ounce it's bud light, but it's not known where he made that stop. When he first arrived home, his family was out running errands.

Starting point is 00:10:23 Chad went to the shed, but it's unclear exactly what he was doing. Laura and the kids arrived home shortly after, and the boys ran excitedly to greet their dad who they probably didn't expect to be home on a Thursday morning. Laura later said that Chad played with his boys for the rest of the morning, and she made lunch for everyone. While they ate, Laura observed the first major red flag. while he was eating chad said this will be my last good meal lord was concerned by this statement and thought chad might be planning to remove himself from this earth now after lunch chad called his father and spoke to him on the phone for just a few minutes it's unclear what the general nature or context of the call was however he has been quoted as saying clayton is going to be the hardest at some point after the phone call chad seemed to be stable he spent the next few hours of the next few hours of his time was doing yard work and playing with the kids. At 3.30, Laura once again noticed strange behavior.

Starting point is 00:11:22 Chad began reading the Bible to four-year-old Hunter. He then began walking around the house with the Bible in hand saying, Chad knows what's right. In initial reports, Laura said Chad accessed the gun safe in their bedroom around this time. She told him that he was scaring her, but Chad assured her he was just joking around. She then tried to get him to take a nap. wanting him to be alone in case he was planning to remove himself from this earth, she and the three boys laid down with him in the bed. While they all laid together, Chad told his sons that they were the best boys and that they had done nothing wrong. Soon after laying down, Chad jumped up and went back to the gun safe and pulled out his 22 caliber rifle, which made everyone

Starting point is 00:12:07 start screaming. Laura, who thought that his intended target was himself, began pleading with him not to do it, telling him that they loved him. She pulled out her phone to call 911 to get him help, but he ripped the phone from her hand and threw it across the room, telling her that it was too late. This mayhem must have gotten the attention of Laura's daughter who was watching TV in the other room. She walked to the master bedroom just in time to see her stepfather shoot Hunter four times in front of the whole family. Hunter was hit in the right arm, the right side of his torso, and twice on the right side of his head. Laura started screaming for the other kids to run and then grabbed her phone and called 911. During the call, Laura is screaming and frantic, trying to say her

Starting point is 00:12:50 address to the operator, but she said it so fast that they could not hear it clearly. She was screaming, my husband shot my baby. Help me, God, help me. He's hurt. He's hurt, God. He's hurt. Chase, come on, bud, run. Fall by lots of screaming and my baby's dead. My baby's dead. Don't shoot him. You can hear Chad tell her to get off of him as she is fighting him. She kept screaming her address while the kids screamed in the background, Chase, come on, bud, run. And Laura yelled at Chad, my baby is dead, Chad. My baby's dead. Don't shoot him. As the call continues, there was more screaming in the background between Laura and a small child. While Laura was on the phone with 911, Clayton and his older sister ran out the back door of the house, then in opposite directions.

Starting point is 00:13:36 Clayton ran towards a field behind the house. Once Clayton ran, Chad began to pursue him. A few seconds later after getting out of the house, Laura's daughter turned and saw Chad raising his gun to take aim at Clayton. The 14-year-old stopped fleeing and instead ran straight toward Chad to try to stop him. Chad shot Clayton twice in the back from about 70 yards away. Maiton Clayton dropped to the ground before his sister was able to reach him. He then calmly walked over to his seven-year-old son, and when he reached him, he shot him twice more in the head, killing him. When Chad started shooting Clayton, the teenager changed course and went to find Chase. At this point, Laura had carried Hunter out of the house to wait for EMTs, all while trying to render aid to her little boy.

Starting point is 00:14:24 Chase's sister found him, picked him up, and starting running down the driveway towards the fire station that was across the intersection from their house. Fortunately, Chad saw them fleeing and quickly caught up. On a neighbor's ring doorbell camera, police were able to find the audio of this moment. Chad was pointing the gun into stepdaughter's head from point-blank range, screaming, don't shoot me, don't shoot me. Chad demanded that she put chase down. She lowered the boy to the ground and he began to run. Chad followed him to where he was hiding behind their trash cans and attempted to shoot him. The gun was out of bullets so Chad had to stop to reload. This delay gave the 14-year-old time to flee into the street towards the firehouse.

Starting point is 00:15:08 Fortunately, the three-year-old fled back toward his house and his mother looking for her safety. She managed to flag down a vehicle and screamed that her stepdad was killing everyone. Afterwards, she continued to run to the fire station as the bystander made another 911 call. Meanwhile, Chad turned and went back to the house where he found Laura holding chase. There, a struggle ensued with Chad trying to pull their youngest son from her arms. Laura fought back hard as Chad bit her. She put her hand on the barrel of the gun, pushing it away from her baby. She pushed it, her thumb covered the end of the barrel, and Chad pulled the trigger. The bullet hit her thumb and the shock was enough of a distraction for Chad to pull the toddler from her arms,

Starting point is 00:15:48 and shot him in the head, executing him right in front of his mother. You may never know why Chad did not attempt to kill Laura at this point or attempt to remove himself from the earth. She was suffering from her own gunshot wound, or a man should get a hold of her phone and called 911 again. She ran back out of the house to Hunter's body to attempt to resuscitate him. and 911 call she's once again hysterical and screaming, likely from her own physical pain as well as the horror of what just happened. The call, you can make out phrases like, my children are shot, my children are not breathing, my three children,

Starting point is 00:16:24 and also I called and no one came, their father, their father killed them. During the call, the operator attempts to calm her down to give her instructions on how to do CPR. During this time frame, Chad was calmly walking around the property, collecting the bodies of his children. He first went back to the field and picked up Clayton, throwing his body over his shoulder and carrying him back to the side yard where Laura was attempting to save Hunter. Chad laid him on the ground next to his wife and child, and walked back into the house to get Chase with a large spot of Clayton's blood on the back of his green t-shirt, then brought Chase's body outside and laid him next to Clayton in the grass. The bodies of his dead sons lined up in the yard, he calmly returned the front steps, laid his rifle down next to him.

Starting point is 00:17:10 and let a cigarette to wait for the police. Deputies arrived at 4.26 p.m. For our listeners who live in urban areas, this 20-minute response time may seem unacceptable. We'd like to point out that in more rural towns that do not have their own full-time police departments, when you call the police, the only officers available to respond are the county sheriffs.

Starting point is 00:17:33 The sheriffs would be dispatched at anywhere in the county when they receive a call like this. You can see in the body cam footage that these officers started driving as soon as the call came in, speeding with lights and sirens the whole way. They were also speeding directly into an active shooter situation. When the deputies first arrived, they needed to assess how to safely get to the children and Chad

Starting point is 00:17:56 without putting their own lives at risk. In the body camp footage, you can hear an officer asking to go to the boys laying in the grass because he knew they needed help. However, they didn't have Chad in custody yet and didn't know where his zone. gun was. They could see Chad sitting on the steps, but he did not

Starting point is 00:18:13 respond to them. They were yelling from the side of the road, walk toward us, but Chad didn't follow the instructions. After seeing that he wasn't going to come to them, they crossed the lawn while maintaining cover behind the camper parked in the driveway. As they approached, they

Starting point is 00:18:29 continued to yell directions to Chad to stand up, but Chad remained sitting on the steps. When they reached Chad, he did not resist as they pulled him from the steps, pushed him to the ground and cuffed him. The other police raced the bodies of the boys as lores screamed at Chad in the background, you took my life from me. The family dog was barking from inside the house and Chad yelled at him to stop. He then calmly told the officers not to let him out and that he didn't

Starting point is 00:18:55 think the dog would bite them as long as they left him alone. While Chad was spaced down and cuffed, an officer asked him what was going on. He said, I'm not trying to hurt nobody. I'm completely sober. I've never done drugs a day in my life. Then shortly after he said, I ain't going to hurt nobody. I ain't got nothing on me. Just my phone. That's it. I ain't mad. I ain't nothing. As you saw from the beginning of the episode, Chad asked if he could be rolled over because he was uncomfortable, after which the officer stood him up and began walking him away from the crime scene. The officer who initially cuffed Chad handed him to Deputy Scott Rudd to take him to the cruiser. As the deputy walked him to the cruiser, he told Chad, you have the right to remain silent,

Starting point is 00:19:40 and you should fucking use it. He then searched Chad's pockets and placed him the backseat of the SUV. While this was happening, Hunter was quickly put in an ambulance, and Deputy Sparks picked up Chase to carry him to the ambulance, hoping to get him help. After a few yards, he realized that Chase was dead. There was no saving him, laid him back in the grass. First responders quickly realized there was nothing they could do to save the boys. instead covered their tiny bodies with sheets.

Starting point is 00:20:07 Deputy Rudd went to find the padded helmets they used for the protection of individuals were at risk of hurting themselves. In return, Chad complained that the car was too hot and his cuffs were too tight. Chad's cuffs had been double-locked, preventing them from tightening beyond a safe point. Officers didn't make any move to adjust the AC or Chad's cuffs. They just stood nearby with the back hatch open. In a body cam footage, Chad has heard saying, tell them I did it, take me to jail, and also hear that the officers were at their limit.

Starting point is 00:20:38 When officer said, close the door so I don't kill the motherfucker. Later, when the deputy was driving Chad back to the station, he looked in the rearview mirror and saw that Chad had worked the seatbelt loose, and appeared that he was trying to wrap it around his neck. The officer stopped and opened the back door to fix the belt, and Chad complained about the cuffs again. The officer just tightened the seatbelt to prevent it from getting loose again and continued driving. As the defense later prepared for the trial, the officers would be criticized for not tending to Chad's request for more AC and looser cuff, saying that this was a misuse of power.

Starting point is 00:21:10 It would also be criticized for their crude language involving Chad. Chad was transported to the station to be interviewed and was officially arrested that night at 10 p.m. During the interview, Chad's calm and cooperative demeanor was no longer as stable as it had been during his arrest. Now, during the interview, he said many things, some that proved to be true and some that were not. One of the claims he made was that he had been planning their murders since the previous October, eight months before he actually did it. He also said he hadn't been able to sleep the previous three nights because his head was filled with thoughts about killing them. He falsely quoted the Bible at one point and said that he should have killed Laura first because she had

Starting point is 00:21:52 made the other murders more difficult. Then at some point in the interview, he claimed he had no idea what they were asking about. He said he didn't kill anyone or didn't remember killing anyone. At some points he said he wasn't the shooter or maybe he had been at work when it had happens. During the interview, Chad was only partially read his Miranda rights.

Starting point is 00:22:13 Now, all officers have a card that they carry with them with the full Miranda rights on them to be read after every arrest. In addition, Chad would twice mention a lawyer, though he didn't make a clear and direct request for questioning to stop until he had a. lawyer. He did at one point say, I'll just wait for a lawyer. I really don't know. Just give me a couple of days. I'll talk to a lawyer and get nice, good answers. However, officers did not stop

Starting point is 00:22:40 questioning or provide him with a public defender. So, as we've seen a few times recently, any information acquired during this interview would later be suppressed from his trial. Chad ended up being charged with 21 different crimes. It's included nine murder counts, three for each child because of the different aggravating circumstances that went along with each murder. Chad appeared in the courtroom the next morning in a padded suit, often used by prisoners who were a danger to themselves. Body cam footage, you can hear officers talking about how he had refused to get dressed for the hearing. During the hearing, the defense asked for a $75,000 bond. So it countered that this was the most heinous crime imaginable, requested a $20 million bond.

Starting point is 00:23:23 Judge set bond at $20 million. And Chad left the hearing to do. be held in Claremont County Jail. Over the next few weeks, Chad would have several phone calls recorded from prison. He spoke to his mother, mental health professionals, and his brother. In a call to a mental health professional, she was trying to determine how dangerous he was and where he should be held in the jail. She asked him if he felt bad for what he had done, and he said no. Ten days after being arrested, he spoke to his mother on the phone.

Starting point is 00:23:51 Keep in mind, this was after he had a lawyer and both he and his family had been advised about their plan to seek insanity or serious. mental illness plea. During this phone call, he told his mother that he remembered everything about the day he killed his boys. Two days later, he spoke to his brother and compared himself to Adolf Heller. Over the next few months, the defense took on the burden of proving that Chad was innocent because he was not in his right mind during the murders. This was partially a direct response to the prosecution being very public about their plan to seek the death penalty. Ohio is one of the states that has a ban on using the death penalty for seriously mentally ill defendants.

Starting point is 00:24:27 In 2021, Ohio passed the law prohibiting the death penalty being used in cases of serious mental illness. This is also referred to as SMI. Under Ohio law, if you are suffering from a serious mental illness at the time of the offense, you can have an SMI hearing, which will take the death penalty off the table. The person is significantly impaired and therefore they didn't have the capacity to exercise rational judgment and couldn't understand the significance of their crime, they would not be eligible for death. They would still be eligible for life without parole. SMI has some differences from the insanity defense.

Starting point is 00:25:01 There are very specific parameters involved. This law only applies to people suffering from four specific illnesses. These are schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, or delusional disorder. To use this defense, an expert must prove the defendant has been diagnosed with one of these diseases. They would also have to prove that they held the diagnosis at the time of the incident, and it was impairing their ability to exercise rational judgment.

Starting point is 00:25:26 Now, obviously anyone kills their children out of the blue is not in their right mind. However, in order to prove that you are innocent, either due to insanity or a serious mental illness, the defendant often needs a prior history of diagnosis, treatment, or medication showing that they were mentally ill. As the prosecution lawyer would later say, this was a lightning strike from a blue sky, meaning that there was not a history of mental illness, that this came out of nowhere. Several experts evaluated Chad. The first two doctors who evaluated him had two different perspectives. No, they both felt that he might have been suffering from mental illness at the time.

Starting point is 00:26:05 One felt that he did not meet the criteria for an SMI plea. Prior to June 15th, he had no diagnoses, treatments, or prescriptions for any mental health conditions. They said it was likely that he suffered from a moment. mood disorder at the time of the murders. However, they determined that he did know the consequences and wrongness of his actions. It was illustrated by the way he warned officers that he wasn't dangerous when they arrested him. Also in the way, he said, take me to jail, the cruiser. In addition, the phone calls after he was in jail illustrated that he was very aware of what happened. During incarceration, he showed no acute mental health symptoms, received no treatment or medication.

Starting point is 00:26:44 His behavior was not consistent with someone in the throes of a delusion. It was also a Also no indication during the body cam footage that he was in the middle of a delusion when he was arrested or being interviewed. The other doctor's opinion was that Chad was bipolar and felt that Chad did not know what he was doing that day. However, in his report, there was no further testing reports to prove how he had gotten this conclusion. Nothing in his report indicated that his diagnosis was based off the criteria of the DSM-5. After the first two doctors did not agree as to whether or not Chad was culpable for the murders, a third doctor was brought in. This next doctor who evaluated him completely disagreed and did not think he suffered from any mental illness. However, she determined that he did have a history of

Starting point is 00:27:31 controlling behavior, issues handling anger, and poor frustration tolerance. She said these were all likely related to his underlying personality structure. When it was made possible, public that Chad was attempting to get an insanity or SMI plea, it caused major upheaval. The public was outraged by the possibility that he could avoid the death penalty. After all, this is what the death penalty is for, the worst of the worst. Many said if it was just judged on conduct and not the why, it was an easy death penalty. Over the course of the past year, the defense filed over two dozen motions to try to adjust how Chad's trial would pan out.

Starting point is 00:28:11 In addition to the attempt for an SMI defense, they made many other requests. They requested that most of the 350 photos and videos from that day not be shown to the jury due to their graphic nature. They also made a motion to block any emotional testimonies from witnesses. They also made some fairly common requests like the request that Chad be allowed to wear street clothes and no restraints in front of the jury. One of his more strange requests was to allow convicted felons to serve. serve on the jury. Now, this is something that is illegal in most cases, and it's not entirely clear why this request was made. Some speculate that the defense felt a jury of convicted felons might have more sympathy or perhaps not be as keen to give him the death penalty. However, this doesn't

Starting point is 00:29:00 seem likely. A very real stereotype about most prisons is that they are not safe for people who hurt children. So the idea that other convicted felons would have sympathy for a man who executed his own children seems unlikely. The original trial date was set for July 8th of 2024. However, this was moved to allow for the SMI hearing. This change happened. It created a challenging chain of events for the court. Judge overseeing Chad's case was a death penalty certified judge. It is set to retire in December of 2024. The delay in the trial, Chad's next date would be set for 2025. Finding another judge who was certified for the death penalty would prove to be challenging. Initially, Chad waived his right to a speedy trial to allow for this to happen. However, this became

Starting point is 00:29:47 a non-issue when the defense came to the table at the very end of July 24 with a plea deal. Chad's team proposed that he plead guilty in exchange for the state dropping the aggravating circumstances that made him eligible for the death penalty. My position became very clear to me throughout this process and most recently Wednesday when we discussed this plea offer with Laura that doing anything further would be actually an act of cruelty toward her. The trauma that these two have experienced that day and continue to experience, my job as I saw it this week is to relieve them of that additional agony. That is why we are here today. On August 2nd, 2024, Chad Dorman pled guilty to five felonies.

Starting point is 00:30:28 Three counts of aggravated murder for killing his boys and two counts of felonious assault for the injuries that his wife and stepdaughter sustained. A sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. To accept the plea deal, Chad withdrew both of his previous pleas. These previous pleas were not guilty by reason of insanity and not guilty by reason of serious mental illness. Both Laura and her daughter appeared in court, and the judge made it very clear to the media

Starting point is 00:30:56 that there were to be absolutely no photos or videos taken of them. The pair were in full support of this deal. Had Chad continued to push toward a trial, both women would have to take the stand and relive that horrific day. They'd have been waiting months or even years to see if a jury found him guilty and what his sentence would end up being. With this outcome, the wait was over. There would not be jurors who have to sit through horrific video footage,

Starting point is 00:31:24 stories, and photos. In addition, because he pled guilty, there was no chance of an appeal. This is another gift to the family and the community. In her statement, Laura Dorman requested that everyone remember and talk about her sons, Clayton, Hunter, and Chase, and for who they were before their father took their lives. She said, remember them as three little boys who loved fishing, go carting, and swimming. Remember them as the little boys who were always running the baseball fields or running around outside.

Starting point is 00:31:57 Remember them as the boys who love to have fun and were in. separable from one another. Their lives are not only about what happened to them. They are so much more than that. I love you, Clayton, Hunter, and Chase. The three brothers were laid to rest on Monday, June 26, 2023. The family held visitation hours from 4 to 8 p.m., followed by a celebration of life. Mourners were asked to wear bright colors in honor of how fun the three boys were. In addition, a community event was held to honor the family and thank the first responders. Food was provided by several local churches. The family requested that in lieu of flowers, people who wished to honor the boys

Starting point is 00:32:40 would make their donations to improve their favorite baseball field. A memorial sprang up in front of the boys' house soon after the tragedy. It was notably different than many others that we have seen because most things were in sets of three. Three heart balloons, three blue teddy babies. Bears, three matching bouquets of flowers. A sign in the center of the collection read, Fly High Boys, remembering Hunter, Clayton, and Chase. Need a break from such a heavy video while press pause, pick up your phone, and download

Starting point is 00:33:14 Screw Jam. A fun, brain teasing puzzle game awaits you. Use the QR code or the link in the description to get three hours of infinite lives and 100 coins today.

The Misery Machine - The Case of the Doerman Family Massacre

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