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Hearing Postponed For Dad In Kids' Drownings

A court hearing to detemine if a downriver dad should be tried for murder in the deaths of his two toddlers has been postponed until mid-November. The prosecution wants more time for a detailed analysis of the cause of death.

The 27-yr-old Steven Nicholson of Allen Park remains in jail without bond.
 
His two childrem, 15-month old Ella Stafford and 13-month old Johnathon Sanderlin,w ere scalded and had  drowned according to initial autopsy findings. Police discovered their bodies in the apartment the early morning of October19.

Nicholson's defense attorney William Winters said it appears what happened was a tragic accident and nothing purposeful.

"There's a whole lot of investigation we still need to do," he said. "(Regarding) the temperature of the water. How these faucets got on. The interior of the apartment to look at as well to see whether these doors are open, closed, how they got open, the latches on the doors."

Winters contends the children may have turned the hot water on the bathtub themselves. He also old WWJ he would like an independent autopsy. The preliminary examination--to determine whether Nicholson should stand trial on 2 counts of felony murder and two counts of child abuse--has been pushed back to November 15.

Family members present in the courtroom Monday declined to comment.

 (Copyright 2010 WWJ Radio.  All Rights Reserved.)

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