(WWJ) John Skelton will stand trial for the alleged murder of his three young sons.
A Lenawee County judge issued the ruling on Thursday, binding the Skelton over for trial more than 15 years after the boys went missing out of Morenci, Michigan.
Andrew, Alexander and Tanner Skelton disappeared while they were with their father at his home on Thanksgiving, 2010.
At the time, Andrew was nine; Alexander, seven; and Tanner, only five years old.
John Skelton was supposed to return the boys to their mother the next day, and when he didn't, she reported them missing.
According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, John Skelton went to a hospital on Black Friday and told workers there that he'd injured his ankle while trying to commit suicide.
Police went to his home, where they found the house destroyed, but no sign of the boys.
Investigators said, when questioned, John Skelton changed his story about where the boys were multiple times — first saying they were given to an unknown woman. He later told police that he gave them to an "underground group" in order to keep them safe.
In March of last year, all three boys were legally declared dead, despite that their bodies have not been found.
Skelton brothers as they looked when they went missing in 2010HandoutTestifying at the preliminary hearing, former FBI Special Agent Kelly Liberti, who assisted in the search for the boys, said most of her conversations with John Skelton focused on the boys' mother and his ex-wife, Tanya.
"There was a lot of conversation about Tanya wanting everything," Liberti said. "He didn't want her to have any of the memories, how she hurt him, and that the courts don't forgive accidents."
Liberti testified that John Skelton repeatedly referred to the boys in past tense during the interview.
About a year after the boys went missing, John Skelton pleaded no contest to three counts of unlawful imprisonment and was sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison. He was soon to be released after serving that sentence, when the murder charges were filed.
The Sept. 3 ruling by District Judge Laura J. Schaedler means she believes prosecutors presented enough circumstantial evidence to move forward with he case against Skelton on three counts of open murder and felony tampering with evidence.
Thursday's proceedings were briefly interrupted due to a tornado warning, before resuming, and concluding with the judge's decision.
Skelton will be back in court for an arraignment on September 16.
