Parents charged with murder in child’s death, abuse of 5 others, appear in court
By FOX19 Digital Staff
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WXIX) - Two parents charged with murder in the death of their 8-year-old son more than six years ago and abusing their other five children appeared in court Thursday morning.
John Snyder II and Katherine Snyder were arraigned in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court.
Katherine Snyder pleaded not guilty and her bond was set at $50,000.
Her attorney says they will be fighting a no-contact order that she has to stay away from her children.
The attorney for John Snyder II was not in court so the magistrate continued the case until Friday.
As a result, no bond was set or plea was entered.
The couple was indicted earlier this year on 26 total charges: four counts of aggravated murder, four counts of murder, four counts of felonious assault and 14 counts of endangering children.
According to court records, they purposely caused the blunt-force trauma death of 8-year-old Adam Snyder in October 2016.
Authorities allege the abuse happened when the couple lived on Conrad Drive in Springfield Township.
They were living in New York state at the time of their recent arrests.
The couple filed motions in civil court in 2019 and 2020 to overturn their son’s cause of death.
The court documents from the civil court hearings state that “numerous experts” retained by John and Katherine reviewed the medical records and the coroner’s report.
Those experts said medical and scientific evidence showed Adam died from “septicemia with profound neuropsychiatric illness.” Septicemia is the clinical name for blood poisoning by bacteria, Johns Hopkins Medicine says.
Their findings went against that of the Hamilton County Coroner’s Office and were ultimately rejected.
Adam was one of five children the couple adopted, documents show. They also have one biological child.
The Snyders’ other five children were found severely malnourished and had signs of physical abuse, according to the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office.
The children suffered the alleged abuse over the course of nearly two years. The earliest documented date is New Year’s Eve 2014, with the last being Oct. 5, 2016, the documents read.
Once Adam’s death record was published in February 2017, the Hamilton County Department of Jobs and Family Services filed for permanent custody of the surviving five children.
The Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office said the information leading to the indictments came from the surviving children themselves.
Now that the kids are older and safe, the prosecutor’s office said they were able to disclose details of what happened in Springfield Township years ago.
The couple was in custody at the Clinton County New York Jail, inmate records show.
In New York, defendants have up to 90 days to determine if they want to fight the extradition.
They arrived at the Hamilton County Justice Center around 3 p.m. Tuesday, jail records show.