PAPILLION, Neb. (KMTV) — According to a press release from the Sarpy County Attorney, the state has filed a motion to amend the charges against Adam Price from felony child abuseto two counts of first-degree murder.
Price’s two children, 5-year-old Emily and 3-year-old Theodore, were found dead in his Bellevue home during a welfare check in May. He was later arrested on a fugitive warrant in Pacifica, California and transferred to Sarpy County from San Mateo County, California.
“Recently obtained autopsy reports show that Emily and Theodore died by asphyxia due to smothering. Based on this new information, the state filed a motion to amend the charges to two counts of First Degree Murder,” said Chief Deputy Sarpy County Attorney Bonnie Moore in a statement.
Autopsy results take some time to process since the deaths happened in May and it's now October.
"It just, sometimes takes a while, whether there's going to be additional testing done or analysis done by the pathologist to come to that conclusion on the cause of death," Moore said.
Moore says first-degree murder charges elevate the penalty.
"Potential sentence for this case is life imprisonment, the county has the option, the state has the option to ask for the death penalty in that and that's a decision that we make later on, we have not yet made a decision on that," Moore said.
At this time, there's been no motions filed over Price's competency. The case is still under investigation but Moore expects it could be complex.
"Whether something is a death penalty case, is a complicated analysis with a lot of factors we have to weigh before we make that decision," Moore said.
Price is scheduled to appear in court regarding this motion on October 12. After that, a preliminary hearing will be set.
RELATED: When can police take a welfare check further than a door knock?
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