BLOOMINGTON - The tape of hysterical pleas Amanda Hamm made to police as her children were trapped underwater in her car was played for a jury Tuesday in the murder trial of Maurice LaGrone Jr.

La ;Grone, 30 and Hamm, 29, each are charged with nine counts of murder in the Sept. 2, 2003, drowning deaths of Christopher Hamm, 6, Austin Brown, 3, and Kyleigh Hamm, 23 months.

"My kids are in the car. I need help. The car is in the (expletive) lake. My kids are in the car drowning," Hamm shouted during a three-minute 911 call placed to police from a pay phone near the west-side boat access to Clinton Lake.

LaGrone also is heard on the tape telling police, "You need to hurry."

The jury of seven women and five men listened intently as the tape was played twice in the courtroom. One juror learned forward on the rail of the jury box and took notes as the tape was played.

Darren Leggett, a fisherman who was the first person to see Hamm and LaGrone after the car became submerged, recalled a woman screaming from the shore.

"She was screaming hysterically, 'My kids are dead. My kids are dead,' " Leggett said.

Hamm told Leggett that the three children had been in car about 15 minutes. Leggett said he initially started to back away from the scene because he was unsure of the circumstances of the situation.

"I didn't know what kind of situation I was getting into. I didn't know if it was a violent situation," Leggett told the jury.

Leggett called 911 from his cell phone and was told that help had been dispatched as a result of Hamm's call. He said he was heading towards the water to attempt a rescue when deputies arrived.

Leggett said LaGrone and Hamm "did not appear to be wet at all" as they stood on the boat dock near the parking lot.

Two DeWitt County deputies testified about their efforts to rescue the children from the car as it sat in about 4½ feet of water. Sgt. Tim Colllins said he pulled a child safety seat from the car but could not find the children. A second deputy located the baby and passed her to Collins.

The children were brought out of the car in about two minutes, said Collins.

Collins recalled that Hamm was wearing sweat pants that were so wet that she had problems keeping them up. He said LaGrone's pants also were wet.

Both Collins and deputy Bruce Randolph testified that Hamm was hysterical when police arrived at the lake. Randolph said the task of locating the children was difficult because of the murky water.

"You couldn't see a thing in that water," said Randolph.

Randolph brought Hamm and LaGrone to Dr. John Warner Hospital after the children were transported by ambulance and a fire department vehicle. LaGrone was quoted as saying, "They were just babies. It shouldn't have happened to them."

The deputy also said Hamm and LaGrone seemed reluctant to go into the emergency room at the hospital.

"It seemed to me I was a little more anxious to get to the emergency room than they were," said Randolph.

Earlier Tuesday, the jury heard from the last people to see the Hamm children alive.

Susan Swearingen was the children's baby sitter who testified that she noticed negative changes in the Hamm household after LaGrone moved into Hamm's apartment. The children and Hamm seemed less happy and more withdrawn, she said.

Three children who lived near Hamm told about a conversation they had with Christopher and Austin hours before the children died. When they two were invited to a game of kickball, they told their friends, "I'm going home to eat dinner then I'm going on a boat ride," said Dustin Ferry, now 15.

Today, the prosecution will continue to unfold its case with additional police officers and staff members who were on duty at the hospital the night the children were brought in from the lake.

Edith Brady-Lunny can be reached at eblunny@;mchsi.com.