DAWSON COUNTY, Neb. (KSNB\/Gray News) \u2013 A father in Nebraska is believed to have killed himself, along with his wife and kids, on the same day of his son\u2019s high school graduation.<\/p>\n
On May 10, the Dawson County Sheriff\u2019s Office went to a home around 9:45 a.m., where they found four dead people inside the residence<\/p>\n
According to the Nebraska State Patrol, it is believed that Jeremy Koch, 42, killed each of his sons, Hudson, 18, and Asher, 16, and his wife, Bailey, 41, before killing himself.<\/p>\n All four were found with fatal knife wounds.<\/p>\n A knife was found at the scene.<\/p>\n At the 2025 Cozad Graduation Ceremony, Superintendent Dan Endorf commented on the tragedy, and how it affected the graduating class.<\/p>\n \u201cAs you know, our community and our senior class experienced a tragedy within the past few hours,\u201d Endorf said. \u201cThe bittersweet emotions felt by the senior class on their graduation day, and throughout this entire gymnasium for that matter, cannot be concealed in this moment and are emblematic of the adult lives our graduates are about to begin. While our Haymaker pride is being tested at this moment, let\u2019s all do our very best within the next hour to celebrate the 13 year journey that our graduates are completing today.\u201d<\/p>\n In a public Facebook post, Bailey\u2019s parents, Lane and Peg Kugler, expressed frustration with the state of mental health care in the United States and said Koch had long struggled with his mental health.<\/p>\n The family said Koch\u2019s mental health issues dated back to at least 2009 and included multiple suicide attempts. In 2015, the family began publicly sharing their struggles in an effort to reduce stigma and advocate for others. Bailey, an author and early contributor to the parenting website\u00a0Her View From Home<\/i>, launched her own\u00a0Facebook page<\/a>\u00a0to raise awareness about mental illness and offer hope to others in similar situations.<\/p>\n Bailey wrote that her husband\u2019s condition worsened significantly in 2024. On May 3, she said Koch had survived at least four suicide attempts.<\/p>\n Bailey said the situation became dire in March, when she woke to Koch standing over her with a knife, saying, \u201cSomething is wrong.\u201d She said she was able to de-escalate the situation and convince him to seek help.<\/p>\n After ending electroconvulsive therapy treatments earlier this year, Bailey said Koch had become \u201ca shell of himself.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMental illness is taking my husband from me, and I\u2019m begging you to open your eyes and see the reality that is this society\u2019s mental health crisis,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n The NSP is the lead agency in the homicide investigation. The Dawson County Attorney has ordered autopsies of all four residents.<\/p>\n The investigation remains ongoing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Father believed to have killed entire family in apparent murder-suicide on son\u2019s high school graduation day A father in Nebraska is believed to have killed himself, along with his wife and kids, on the same day of his son\u2019s high school graduation. (Source: KSNB) DAWSON COUNTY, Neb. (KSNB\/Gray News) \u2013 A father in Nebraska is…<\/p>\n![\"According](\"https:\/\/gray-whns-prod.gtv-cdn.com\/resizer\/v2\/F2LXKGH2YFCGPLOV2F7QRW2XMA.jpg?auth=d1623648b00a74acd352f011de184e6594e49be06226d0c4d176a54944ac751f&width=980&height=551&smart=true\")
<\/div>