Cops: It's Murder (Drowning of 3 children)

CLINTON (IL) -- Roger Massey could not give out key details of how a car with three children ended up in Clinton Lake on Sept. 2 -- drowning all three -- but he still had a lot to say at a Wednesday news conference.

The DeWitt County sheriff announced multiple first-degree murder charges against Amanda Hamm, mother of the children, and Maurice Lagrone Jr., her then-boyfriend. Both were arrested Tuesday -- Hamm in Bloomington and Lagrone in St. Louis. They are expected to make their first court appearances today and could face the death penalty if convicted.

- Massey said as evidence unfolds, people may note similarities between the DeWitt County case and the drowning deaths of two South Carolina boys several years ago at the hands of their mother, Susan Smith. In that case, the mother deliberately drove her car into a lake and told police her children had been abducted.

- Asked if police believe Lagrone intentionally put the car in the lake as a premeditated act, Massey said, "When you read the information, that's the intent we're dealing with in these charges."

- While he would not talk about what the evidence will show, the sheriff said, "Our purpose is to try to disprove that this was an accident." Testimony from medical experts as well as data from technical experts will play a big role, he said.

- The sheriff said money from life insurance policies was not a motive. He said authorities do have a motive, but he would not discuss it.

- Massey said the case is so complicated, "You would have to be here two or three days to see the whole thing and understand it."

Massey repeatedly cited Illinois Supreme Court rules limiting the amount of information police may disclose before trial as his reason for not answering questions about how the incident happened.

Much of the information disclosed Wednesday dealt with the arrests of Hamm and Lagrone. Hamm, 27, was arrested Tuesday night at the Bloomington homeless shelter where she has been living, and Lagrone, 28, was arrested several hours earlier at a St. Louis hotel. Each is held in the DeWitt County jail on $500,000 bond.

Massey said Lagrone was arrested with the help of the U.S. marshal's Violent Fugitive Task Force and agents from the Illinois State Police. He agreed to be extradited and was returned to Clinton on Tuesday night.

Both individuals "were surprised when officers approached them," the sheriff said.

Flanked by three state police investigators and three members of his department, Massey told reporters that Hamm and Lagrone will make their first court appearance at 10:30 a.m. today, where formal charges will be presented. A grand jury will hear evidence next week in the case, a move eliminating the need for a preliminary hearing where specific details of the charges would be revealed. "We don't want to try the case twice," Massey said.

Each faces nine counts of first-degree murder. Three of the counts against both Lagrone and Hamm carry aggravating factors making them eligible for extended prison terms, natural life in prison and the death penalty, if convicted.

The sheriff explained the multiple counts were filed because each addresses a different element of the murder allegations. The charges against Lagrone claim he caused the 1997 Oldsmobile Cutlass to become submerged in the lake at the west-side boat access. In the back seat were Christopher Hamm, 6, Austin Brown, 3, and Kyleigh Hamm, 23 months old. The murder charges against Hamm are made under an accountability provision of the law. The sheriff said Hamm's accountability "deals with holding her responsible for playing a part or failing to act" in the deaths of her children. The allegations have not been brought against the mother as part of a plan to entice her to provide testimony against Lagrone, Massey said. "We haven't done all this to do a legal maneuver," he said. "She is being held accountable at the same level as Lagrone, and we wouldn't have charged her unless we thought we could get a conviction."

Massey also would not discuss why the charge of driving under the influence of drugs was dropped against Lagrone during the investigation. Calling the DUI charge "a procedural issue to obtain certain evidence," Massey said drugs did not play a role in the incident.

The sheriff said he is not concerned with a possible attempt to move the case from DeWitt County, where extensive publicity has occurred. Hamm's family also is well-established in the area.

Roger Simpson was named as special prosecutor to handle the case because Hamm's mother works in the DeWitt County state's attorney's office. Attorneys from the state appellate prosecutor's office also will assist with the murder case, Massey said.

Other details of the case and comments from one of the EMTs can be found here:

http://www.pantagraph.com/stories/121103/new_20031211047.shtml

and

http://www.pantagraph.com/stories/121103/new_20031211046.shtml

A truly sad case getting very little national attention.

The media reports following up the drownings included comments from the couple's friends and coworkers saying what an adorable couple they were and how they both doted on the kids.

What's particularly striking is the EMT's comment that, when they arrived on scene, the couple was hysterical and said they were all in the car when it started rolling into the lake and they had tried unsuccessfully to rescue the kids. The EMT noted that the boyfriend was completely dry and the mother was wet up to her waist.

This is in my neck of the woods. Sadly, due to that @#$@!Q@#$ Governor Ryan's "moratorium" on death penalty cases (which current Governor Rod won't lift), these two cold-blooded killers will spend the rest of their lives in jail at taxpayer expense, rather than the justice they deserve.

Sounds like they didn't want the kids. That would make it all right, wouldn't it? I mean, who are we to judge?

You got it. It's all about "choice." Well, the parents' choice anyway. To hell with the kids.

(AP) This is a booking photo of Amanda Hamm, who was charged with first-degree murder in Clinton, Ill.

(AP) This is a booking photo of Maurice Lagrone Jr., who was charged with first-degree murder

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