A woman jailed for 20 years for the deaths of her four children, and pardoned in June, had her convictions overturned on Thursday by the state of New South Wales, and her lawyer said she plans to seek “substantial” compensation.
Kathleen Folbigg was convicted in 2003 of murdering three of her children and of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of the fourth.
Folbigg maintained his innocence and said the children had died of natural causes over a decade, from 1989 to 1999.
In 2019, an initial investigation into the case reaffirmed Folbigg’s guilt. But in 2022, a second investigation led by a former chief justice found new evidence suggesting that two of the children had a genetic mutation that could have caused their deaths.
Folbigg was released from prison in June this year after being pardoned.
“I’m grateful that up-to-date science and genetics have given me answers about how my children died,” an emotional Folbigg told reporters outside a criminal appeals court in Sydney.
Kathleen Folbigg, center, walks with her lawyer Rhanee Rego, right, to the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal in Sydney, December 14, 2023. DAN HIMBRECHTS/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock The second child of Folbigg, Patrick, smiles for the cameraman before his death at eight months old. Laura Folbiggg of the New South Wales Supreme Court died aged 18 months. Her death is what sparked a police investigation into her mother. Supreme Court of New South Wales
“However, even in 1999 we had legal answers to prove my innocence. They were ignored. And fired,” she said. “The system preferred to blame me rather than accept that sometimes children can and do die suddenly, unexpectedly and heartbreakingly.”
Folbigg’s lawyer, Rhanee Rego, said her legal team was preparing a claim for “substantial” compensation for her wrongful imprisonment.
“I’m not prepared to put a figure on it, but it will be greater than any substantial payment that has been made before,” she said.
Folbigg appears via video link during a conviction inquiry in Sydney on May 1, 2019. AP Folbigg was convicted in 2003 of murdering three of her children and of manslaughter for the death of the fourth. Fairfax Media via Getty Images
The case, which was based mainly on circumstantial evidence, caused controversy among scientists and statisticians, some of whom were part of the campaign to secure Folbigg’s release.
“Although there was new scientific evidence (in 2019)… basic scientific principles were not respected from the time of the trial,” said Anna-Maria Arabia, chief executive of the Australian Academy of Sciences. “Make no mistake…without legal reform, these types of miscarriages of justice will continue.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn