Australian Scientists to Present Evidence for Genetic Causes of Disease

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Folbig was sentenced to 40 years in prison and became known as Australia's worst female serial killer. In 2018, a group of scientists began gathering evidence that suggested another possibility for the deaths. More than 90 scientists signed a March 2021 petition arguing for her release on the basis of that evidence. The inquiry will have to grapple with how science weighs the evidence for genetic causes of disease.

Kathleen Folbigg has spent nearly 20 years in prison after being convicted of killing her four children. But in 2018, a group of scientists began gathering evidence that suggested another possibility for the deaths — that at least two of them were attributable to a genetic mutation that can affect heart function. A judicial inquiry in 2019 failed to reverse Folbigg’s conviction, but this month, the researchers will present new evidence at a second inquiry, which could ultimately spell freedom for Folbigg.

This is an audio version of our Feature: She was convicted of killing her four children. Could a gene mutation set her free?

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