Did She? Didn't She?

Kathleen Folbigg has been in jail for 18 years for killing her four children, but now experts believe she may be innocent

- Lavern De Vries

She was convicted of a crime so monstrous it beggars belief: methodically murdering her four kids over a 10-year period. The children all died before they turned two.

Kathleen Folbigg, who lived in Sydney, Australia, was dubbed the nation’s worst female serial killer and her case made headlines around the world. Her trial dominated the news and by the end of it she was sentenced to 40 years in jail for killing her children – Caleb, Patrick, Sarah and Laura.

But Kathleen (now 53) has always maintained her innocence, claiming her babies died of natural causes. And now experts say she may have been telling the truth all along.

New studies point to the fact the children all had a rare genetic mutation that may have contributed to their deaths. A team of top scientists are now calling for Kathleen’s conviction to be overturned. The group, which includes two Nobel laureates, are petitioning New South Wales governor Margaret Beazley to pardon the convicted woman.

Professor John Shine, president of the Australian Academy of Science, is part of a team of 90 scientists requesting the review. “Given the scientific and medical evidence that now exists, signing this petition was the right thing to do,” he says.

During her trial, prosecutors argued that Kathleen had smothered her children out of frustration. Witnesses testified they’d never seen a case of four children dying suddenly and unexpectedly in their sleep in the same family.