Woman accused of killing her four kids pardoned after 20 years in prison
A woman branded Australia's worst female serial killer, who has spent 20 years in prison for accused of killing her four children, has been pardoned and will be released immediately.
Kathleen Folbigg, 55, was convicted of murdering her children Patrick, Sarah and Laura, as well as manslaughter of her first child Caleb, who all died between 1989 and 1999.
She has continually maintained her innocence and after repeated appeals and inquiries an Australian judge has now pardoned her.
Recent finds from two Danish experts claimed her kids carried a genetic disease which caused heart irregularities.
Miss Folbigg's lawyers hoped to prove the kids died naturally, rather than being smothered by their mother - crimes that saw her dubbed as one of the worst female serial killers in Australian history.
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Kathleen Folbigg served 20 years of a 30 year sentence (JOEL CARRETT/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)New South Wales Attorney General Michael Daley said: "There is reasonable doubt for the guilt of Ms Folbigg for each of those offences."
He advised Gov. Margaret Beazley to unconditionally pardon Folbigg.
It comes after former justice Tom Bathurst advised last week that there was reasonable doubt about Miss Folbigg's guilt based on new scientific evidence that the deaths could have been from natural causes.
Caleb Folbigg (AAP/PA Images)
Patrick Folbigg (AAP/PA Images)Bathurst conducted the second inquiry into Folbigg's guilt.
Miss Folbigg was serving a 30-year prison sentence which was to expire in 2033. She would have become eligible for parole in 2028.
The children died separately over a decade, at between 19 days and 19 months old, and their mother insisted their deaths were from natural causes.
Mr Bathurst's final report could recommend that the New South Wales Court of Appeals quash her convictions.
Sarah Folbigg (AAP/PA Images)The latest inquiry was her last chance at getting out before her pending release date in 2028.
Danish professors Professors Mette Nyegaard and Michael Toft Overgaard say they found that the genetic condition's symptom of irregular heart rhythm could have caused the young children's death.
During the initial trial, prosecutors used Miss Folbigg's handwritten diaries to convict her, claiming that they were admissions of guilt.
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Laura Folbigg (AAP/PA Images)Miss Folbigg has always insisted she is innocent and had appealed for another inquiry after evidence emerged following an investigation in 2019.
The previous inquiry upheld her conviction, but a 2019 report looked into the significance of the mutation.
A total of 90 scientists called for Miss Folbigg to be pardoned based on the report by scientists Carola Vinuesa and Matthew Cook.
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