A mother whose three children were murdered by her ex-husband has read out a heartbreaking statement, saying she 'trusted him with everything'.
On June 15, 2023, Chad Doerman shot and killed his three sons.
The man from Ohio was sentenced to life behind bars without the option of parole on Friday (August 2) after pleading guilty to three counts of aggravated murder for the killings of Clayton, 7; Hunter, 4, and Chase, 3, who he shared with his ex-wife Laura.
The now 33-year-old also pleaded guilty to two counts of felonious assault for injuries to his ex-wife and stepdaughter.
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"He [Doerman] will die in prison," Clermont County Prosecutor Mark Tekulve said in court.
Victim impact statements from Laura and Doerman's stepdaughter were read out in court on Friday.
As per WCPO, Laura said: "Where there used to be so much laughter, happiness, noise of rowdy little boys, there is now silence and emptiness.
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"I would do anything to push them on the swing, cover them up one more time and hear their little ways of saying 'I love you.' All of it gone, when I should have had so much more life left to live with them."
She added: "My husband I trusted with everything made a decision that has left my life forever changed.
"I lost my husband and my children to this horrible crime. The law will never replace my life and give me back what I have lost.
"I will hold the life I had and lived so close to my heart forever. Grief will never go away, as it is all the love that is left with no place to go."
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Bodycam footage of Doerman's arrest was released by police shortly after the incident last summer.
Cops could be seen pushing the father down to the ground and cuffing his hands behind his back as he sat on his porch with firearm beside him.
Lara Baron-Allen, Clermont County's chief felony prosecutor, read a statement in court on behalf of Doerman's stepdaughter.
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"Chad, I trusted you with my life. And honestly, I looked up to you more than anyone," it began.
"Most of all, I saw you as my dad — not just a stepdad."
The statement continued: "Waking up on Christmas isn't the same anymore. I don't get excited. I don't even look forward to having presents, because it's not the same. I don't get to wake up early and wake the boys up. I don't get to hide the elf.
"I don't get to do any of the fun stuff anymore because they're gone and you took their lives."
Callum Jones