TEXAS COUNTY, Okla. (KFOR) — The preliminary hearings for three of the five defendants charged with murdering two Kansas moms have started.
The preliminary hearings are for Tifany Adams, Tad Cullum, and Cole Twombly.
Adams, Cullum, and Cole Twombly had preliminary hearings scheduled to be held jointly at the Texas County Courthouse.
Law enforcement officers brought the three suspects and a fourth suspect, Cora Twombly, to the courthouse Tuesday morning. They were each led in separately in handcuffs.
According to family members in the courtroom, Adams showed up, admitted guilt and has waived her right to a preliminary hearing and speedy trial. She is due back in court April 16.
The District Attorney filed a motion to have Paul Grice and Cora Twombly testify, Twombly testified in the morning.
We learned she entered a plea agreement with the state and for her testimony they are recommending she gets a sentence of life with 30 years suspended.
We also found out part of the agreement is about protecting her daughter, while talking about this she became emotional, crying on the stand.
Her testimony focused on the relationship between the suspects and the group they created called God's Misfits, which mixed politics and religion.
Cora Twombly told the court that many of the suspects grew up together in the same area of Oklahoma between Keyes and Boise City.
She said she and her husband, Cole Twombly, were watching videos and learning about their constitutional rights when Paul Grice came by to buy a puppy and joined their conversation. Adams and Cullum later joined the group.
Cora says that she and Adams began to bond over their children's struggles with addiction. Adams also focused on her grandchildren's welfare and her fear of them being abused.
Cora said that, over time, conversations turned to how to get rid of Veronica Butler because Adams did not have enough money to continue fighting for custody.
She testified that a first attempt on Butler’s life was going to be on Butler’s birthday, but it did not happen. The group came up with a new plan that was carried out Easter weekend.
Twombly also testified about the day of the murders. She said that she pulled off on the side of the road and could see two people running between Butler’s car and a trailer. She did not specify who that was, but later said she could see Paul Grice and Butler struggling on the ground.
She claims she saw Grice’s arm moving up and down. She did not see a knife, but believes Grice was stabbing Butler.
Twombly also said the group knew a court-appointed supervisor would be with Butler. She was asked how she felt about it being Jilian Kelley.
She said that the group wasn’t necessarily OK with it, but that Kelley was helping Butler, and so, by association, she had to be killed.
Cora says she had a conversation with Grice and he told her he killed both Butler and Kelley. He said he killed Kelley in the trailer, while on the way to the burial site.
In her testimony, she also claimed her husband Cole Twombly did not know about the plan until the week before because Adams didn't want him involved because he was known to drink and was scared the word would get around.
Cora's testimony wrapped up Tuesday afternoon. After lunch, law enforcement officers were seen leading Grice into the courthouse.
He took the stand and explained his side of the story.
In his testimony, he said the group started as a religious group, then it evolved to political discussions.
He said Adams shared the grandchildren were being sexually and physically abused by one of Butler’s family members. Grice said he was abused as a child, so he bonded with Adams.
Grice also said he lied to the group saying he killed someone before when he was in another group where they protected abused children.
He also showed remorse because he wishes he would of asked for proof of the abuse.
After he killed Butler, he said Adams walked around with an evil laugh that he’d never heard before.
Cora Twombly and Grice previously waived their right to a preliminary hearing. The district attorney filed a motion to have them testify at the preliminary hearings
Subpoenas are also giving an idea of who else may speak during the hearing. This includes an employee of Big R Standard Supply.
Court documents say that is where Adams bought five stun guns before the murders of Veronica Butler and Jilian Kelley.
The medical examiner’s report noted possible stun gun marks on both women and that a stun gun was found underneath the buried freezer the women were found in.
Another person subpoenaed is Jamie Beasley, the property owner where the bodies were dug up.
Court documents say prepaid phones, bought by Adams, last transmitted a signal near the Twombly’s home and the Beasley’s property.
These preliminary hearings give prosecutors a chance to lay out evidence and for a judge to decide if there is enough to go to trial.
The hearings are expected to last until Thursday.
