Deborah Nicholls still waiting on bond decision over a month after convictions vacated

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- Deborah Nicholls, the mother accused of murdering her three kids in a house fire in 2003, is still waiting for a final decision on her bond, over a month after her convictions were vacated.

Nicholls appeared in court today for a bond hearing that lasted the entire day. Now, her next hearing isn't until September 30. She is currently being held at the El Paso County Jail after being transferred from the La Vista Correctional Facility in Pueblo. She had previously appeared in court on August 20 and September 4.

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Nicholls, 59, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the deaths of her children — 11-year-old Jay, 5-year-old Sophia and 3-year-old Sierra — who were killed in a fire at the family's home on Undimmed Circle on March 7, 2003.

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Court records say Nicholls had returned home from working at her karaoke bar to find her house on fire. At the time, she said she had left candles lit that her husband, Tim, had forgotten to put out.

Years after the fatal fire, Deborah and Tim Nicholls were convicted and sentenced to life in prison. An April 2026 court ruling said the prosecution violated Deborah's right to a fair trial.

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Prosecutors had argued in the initial trial that fire accelerants were found in the home, on the pajamas of the children and on their father's clothing. According to court documents, an analysis from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, however, showed no indication of accelerants.

That information was not shared during Deborah's trial. District Attorneys had said the couple was motivated to light their house on fire to get insurance money to pay off drug debts.

Nicholls' convictions were vacated after a court ruling that the prosecution suppressed scientific evidence during her trial. The ruling was filed on August 1 through the El Paso County District Court, according to court documents acquired by KRDO13.

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