A newly released police interview is shedding disturbing new light on the mindset Chad Doerman described to investigators after the deaths of his three young sons in Clermont County, Ohio.

According to newly released footage from the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office, Doerman told detectives that he believed he was carrying out what God wanted him to do. When questioned about why he had acted against his own family, he reportedly answered that he did it “for God.”

The footage, reported by FOX19 in August 2026, provides a rare look at Doerman’s own statements during the investigation following the June 15, 2023 tragedy.

The case involved three brothers — Clayton, 7, Hunter, 4, and Chase, 3 — whose deaths shocked the Clermont County community and drew national attention.

 “I KNEW WHAT I HAD TO DO”

According to FOX19’s reporting, Doerman told investigators that his thinking had been influenced by a Bible story about sacrifice and by a church service he had attended in Amelia some time before the tragedy.

During the interview, he described believing that God was testing him and that he had to obey what he interpreted as a divine command.

Investigators pressed him about his reasoning, and Doerman repeatedly returned to references involving God, the Bible, heaven and hell.

He also described believing that the world was coming to an end and that his family was facing a danger he felt he needed to protect them from.

The newly released footage does not establish that those beliefs were based on any recognized religious teaching. Rather, they were statements describing Doerman’s own perception and interpretation at the time. FOX19 noted that the biblical story he appeared to reference was similar to the account of Abraham and Isaac in Genesis 22.

THE INVESTIGATION AFTER THE JUNE 2023 TRAGEDY

The events unfolded at the family’s Monroe Township home on June 15, 2023.

According to investigators and previous court reporting, Doerman returned home earlier than expected and began behaving unusually. He reportedly picked up a Bible and spoke about knowing what was right before the situation escalated.

Authorities arrived after emergency calls brought deputies to the property.

Doerman was taken into custody and later admitted responsibility for the deaths of his three sons.

The case quickly became one of the most closely watched criminal cases in the region because of the ages of the children and the fact that their father was responsible for their deaths.

QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT HE BELIEVED

The newly released interrogation footage has renewed attention on one of the case’s most difficult questions: what was happening in Doerman’s mind when he made the decisions that led to the deaths of his children?

During questioning, he reportedly spoke about believing that he was in Hell and that the world was approaching an apocalyptic event.

He also described seeing what he interpreted as signs around him and said he believed his family needed protection from what he perceived as an approaching threat.

At times, detectives appeared to struggle to make sense of his explanations and continued asking questions in an effort to understand his reasoning.

The footage is significant because it allows the public to hear Doerman’s own statements rather than relying exclusively on later courtroom summaries.

However, statements made during an investigation should be understood in their proper context. His descriptions of God, heaven, hell and biblical teachings reflected his own reported beliefs at the time, not mainstream Christian doctrine.

THE CASE ENDED WITH THREE LIFE SENTENCES

Doerman’s criminal case eventually came to an end in August 2024.

He pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated murder involving his sons and two counts of felonious assault involving other family members. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors did not pursue the death penalty.

He was sentenced to three consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole, along with additional prison time connected to the assault charges.

Because of the guilty plea, the case did not proceed through a full jury trial.

The newly released interview therefore does not change the legal outcome. Instead, it adds another piece to the public record surrounding the case.

REMEMBERING CLAYTON, HUNTER AND CHASE

Amid the renewed attention surrounding the interrogation footage, the children themselves remain at the center of the tragedy.

Clayton, Hunter and Chase were not simply names in a criminal case. They were three brothers remembered by their family and community for the lives they shared before the tragedy.

Their story has continued to affect their surviving family members and the Clermont County community.

That is why the release of the interrogation footage has also prompted renewed discussion about how the case should be remembered — not only through the disturbing statements made by their father, but through the lives of the three children who were lost.

WHY THE VIDEO IS DRAWING ATTENTION AGAIN

More than three years after the tragedy, the newly released footage has reopened public interest in a case that had largely faded from daily headlines following Doerman’s 2024 sentencing.

For investigators, journalists and members of the public trying to understand the case, the interview offers an unusual glimpse into the explanations Doerman gave shortly after the incident.

But the footage also serves as a reminder of the limits of such explanations.

His statements may provide insight into what he said he believed at the time, but they cannot undo the consequences for the surviving family.

The central facts remain unchanged: three young brothers — Clayton, Hunter and Chase — died in June 2023. Their father pleaded guilty in 2024 and received three consecutive life sentences without parole.

Now, the release of his police interview has added a disturbing new chapter to the public record.

The most haunting part may not simply be what investigators heard in that interrogation room, but the unanswered questions surrounding how a father came to believe that such actions were somehow required of him.

And behind all of the headlines, courtroom proceedings and newly released footage are three children whose lives were cut tragically short — and a family still living with the consequences.