Inset: Spring Weems (Facebook). Background: Authorities at the home where Spring Weems was allegedly killed by her adopted son (KOCO).
In a chilling incident in Oklahoma, a 16-year-old boy stands accused of orchestrating and carrying out the lethal assault on his adoptive mother. The teenager allegedly bludgeoned her with a hammer repeatedly before placing her body in a trash bin and leaving it at the curbside last week.
Jordan Cole Weems is being prosecuted as an adult and faces serious charges, including first-degree murder, desecration of a human corpse, and unlawful removal of a deceased body, according to court documents. The victim, 49-year-old Spring Weems, was his adoptive mother.
In a bid to deny bail, prosecutors detailed the harrowing accusations against Jordan Weems in a court filing on Friday. The filing describes a “brutal bludgeoning,” resulting in severe facial injuries and significant head deformation inflicted on Spring Weems.
Authorities report that Jordan Weems allegedly admitted to police that he first struck his mother in the face between her eyes, continued to beat her into unconsciousness with his fists, and then resumed the assault with a hammer.
Following the alleged murder, prosecutors assert that Jordan Weems attempted to conceal his actions by disposing of the body and concocting stories to account for his mother’s disappearance.
“This was neither a spontaneous act nor a crime of passion,” prosecutors argued. “The Defendant had threatened his mother prior to the incident and meticulously planned the murder by acquiring a hammer and waiting to ambush her in the night. When she unsuspectingly encountered him, he launched a vicious attack, striking her over a dozen times with both the hammer and his fists. After ensuring her death, he took calculated steps to hide her body, clean the crime scene, fabricate evidence to cover her absence, and lie to family members about her whereabouts.”
The attack allegedly stemmed from Jordan Weems and one of his brothers getting caught sneaking out of the house and finding themselves in a situation where they were “running from law enforcement,” Oklahoma City ABC affiliate KOCO reported.
When Spring Weems found out, she reportedly punished Jordan by forcing him and his brother to write “letters to apologize to the police.” She also forced him to eat “prisoner food” (consisting of ham or chicken with beans) and to wear an orange jumpsuit, which she reportedly hoped would “show him what life as a prisoner might be like if he did not start behaving.”
During his punishment, Jordan Weems allegedly told his sibling several times that he was going to kill their mother, Oklahoma City CBS affiliate KWTV reported. When another sibling asked where their mother was, Jordan Weems allegedly said she had gone to their older sister’s home to help with her new baby. When she didn’t return the following day, one of the siblings called their adoptive father, Spring Weems’ ex-husband, who filed a missing persons report with the Logan County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies on Jan. 28 responded to the Weems’ home after receiving calls about Jordan Weems fighting in the street with one of his siblings. Upon arriving, deputies found the two boys. One of Jordan’s brothers reportedly yelled, “He just killed my mom.” Deputies then discovered Spring Weems’ body stuffed in a trash bin that had been rolled out to the curb.
Prosecutors concluded their petition to withhold bond from Jordan Weems by pointing out that the teen had no parent “willing to vouch for him and to ensure his appearance in court.”
“The facts of this crime, namely that the Defendant planned it, laid in wait to execute it, attempted to disguise the fact of the murder, and provided false information to his family to lead them away from the crime and the body of his victim, shows the Defendant to be a danger to the community and evinces a desire to flee from the consequences of his actions,” the filing says.
The request was granted and the defendant is currently being held without bond until his next appearance, which is currently scheduled for Feb. 24.
