Prosecutors in Nebraska asked a county judge to upgrade the charges against a father accused of smothering his two young children to death, arguing
Adam Lee Price made statements to police that left no doubt the killings were premeditated. Price was
initially charged with two counts of felony child abuse resulting in death for allegedly killing his 5-year-old daughter,
Emily Price, and his 3-year-old son,
Theodore Price.
Appearing in Sarpy County court, Deputy County Attorney
Bonnie Moore asserted that information and evidence obtained since Price’s arrest in May sufficiently demonstrated probable cause to upgrade the charges to two counts of first-degree murder, Omaha ABC affiliate KETV reported.
Det.
Dagmar Jensen of the Bellevue Police Department and forensic pathologist Dr.
Jeremy Berg both testified on behalf of the state during Tuesday’s proceedings.
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She said that Price was asked, “Killing the kids was more about you than killing the kids?”
Price allegedly responded, “Yes, it was not a spur of the moment thing.”
Moore reportedly contended that such remarks indicated that Price’s alleged killings were premeditated before asking Det. Jensen about Price’s state of mind following the children’s deaths.
Det. Jensen reportedly testified that she asked if Price “could see doing the day over again.”
Price reportedly responded, “I would do it again,” according to Det. Jensen.
Dr. Berg, who conducted the autopsies on Emily and Theodore and determined the cause of death was asphyxiation, told the court that killing in such a manner takes significant time and effort, Omaha NBC affiliate WOWT
reported.
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Price’s defense attorney reportedly did not make any statements during the proceedings.
As previously reported by Law&Crime, Officers with the Bellevue Police Department twice responded to calls for a wellness check on Price’s home, located in the 2700 block of Alberta Avenue, on the evening of May 15 and the early morning of May 16.
The children’s mother,
Mary Nielsen, was concerned and called 911 after not hearing from her children for several days. She and Price were divorced and shared custody of the children. But a provision of the custody sharing agreement required each parent to have daily contact with the children when they were in the custody of the other parent.
“If anyone has heard from Adam or seen him or the kids … or seen him post on Facebook in the last 24 hours can you please let me know? He’s supposed to contact me every day when he has the kids per court order and I haven’t heard from him in two days,” Nielsen wrote on her Facebook page.
The children were supposed to be with Price in Nebraska for a week-long visit.
The police were called back to Price’s a third time, at approximately 11:30 a.m. on May 16, when a neighbor found the children after walking into Price’s unlocked house at the request of Nielsen.
Police said Price was not at the home when the children’s bodies were found. He was located hours later in Pacifica, California where authorities took him into custody. He was extradited and arrived in Nebraska on May 27 and has remained in the Sarpy County Jail on $2.5 million bond ever since.
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The judge reportedly said a decision on the upgraded charges should come in the next few days.