The judge ordered him held without bail while awaiting a pretrial hearing on July 5.
Doerman was initially charged with three counts of aggravated murder last week after confessing to the killings.
Seven days after the shooting, a Clermont County Grand Jury returned a 21-count indictment against Doerman including nine counts of aggravated murder, eight counts of kidnapping and four counts of felonious assault.
Each murder count carries the death penalty.
In court, the judge asked Doerman if he understood all the charges against him. He calmly answered “yes your honor.”
The prosecution in court Friday revealed additional details that took place at his home on Laurel Lindale Road in Monroe Twp. in the afternoon of June 15.
Clermont County Prosecutor Mark Tekulve said Doerman’s massacre started inside the home where he shot his 4-year-old son in the head twice. He then walked outside and shot the 7-year-old as the boy tried to run away, according to Tekulve. The boy was injured after being shot from behind.
Tekulve said Doerman then walked up to him and shot him twice in the head from a short distance. Doerman then ripped the 3-year-old from his mother’s arms and shot him in the head, according to Tekulve.
After court Friday, Tekulve said his goal is to “have this man (Doerman) executed.”
“I can only imagine the terror these little boys felt and experienced as their father, their protector was murdering them,” said Tekulve. “Unfortunately, their mother saw this. You can imagine the immense trauma and terror that she experienced and we will do the utmost in my office to see this defendant never sees the light of day again.”
How three deaths could result in nine murder charges
Many were confused by the multiple murder charges.
“The Clermont County Prosecutor’s Office threw the kitchen sink at this guy, and wanted to cover all their bases,” said local defense attorney Clyde Bennett.
Bennett said legally speaking, a person can commit aggravated murder in multiple ways against the same victim and each one is a different charge potentially leading to a conviction.
“In the act of kidnapping a person, you killed someone, and then you kidnapped a person to kill them, and then that person is under 13. That’s three ways you can get to aggravated murder,” he said.
Three different charges of aggravated murder for each of the three children added up to nine charges, though Bennett said Doerman could only be sentenced for one per child.
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