Meet Kathleen Folbigg, the Australian lady who has been pardoned after 20 years in prison

The Kathleen Folbigg case has been labelled as one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in Australia after the 55-year-old was pardoned of killing her four infant children.

Despite continuously pleading her innocence, Ms Folbigg spent 20 years of a 25 year sentence behind bars when a court initially found her guilty in 2003 of murdering three of her children and of manslaughter of her first son.

Each child died between the ages of 19 days and 19 months over a decade from 1989, with the Australian public branding Folbigg ‘Australia’s worst female serial killer’ when the case first appeared in court and used circumstantial evidence of Ms Folbigg’s diary entries, in which she spoke about motherhood struggles, to convict her.

However, two decades later, New South Wales Attorney General Michael Daley said a fresh inquiry led by retired judge Tom Bathurst found new scientific evidence that showed there was reasonable doubt that Ms Folbigg was guilty.

Instead, the evidence that highlighted gene mutations, pointed towards the infant children namely Caleb, Patrick, Sarah and Laura, passed away from natural causes.

The BBC reported that Kathleen’s daughters shared a genetic mutation called CALM2 G114R ‘that can lead to sudden cardiac death’ while her sons possessed a different mutation that triggers ‘sudden on-set epilepsy in mice’. There are only 134 known cases of these mutations worldwide.

Although Ms Folbigg has been ordered for immediate release from prison, the unconditional pardoning does not quash her convictions unless Tom Bathurst decides to refer the case to the Court of Criminal Appeal.

If the appeal board agrees, Ms Folbigg could sue the government for millions of compensation just as Lindy Chamberlain did in 1992 for a wrongful conviction, where she ultimately won $1.3 Australian dollars.

What have politicians said about Ms Folbigg’s case?

The decision to free Kathleen Folbigg following the inquiry came after the Attorney General faced mounting political pressure with some sharing their thoughts on TV and social media.

Greens MP Sue Higginson spoke on 10 News First comparing the case to that of Lindy Chamberlain’s and criticising the initial conviction made without ‘any forensic or pathological evidence’ saying: “Today, it’s really important that we all take a long hard look back at this justice system, how Kathleen has been treated…”

Similarly, Animal Justice Party MP Emma Hurst said: “A criminal case has to be proved beyond reasonable doubt. In light of new evidence, that simply hasn’t been met.”

Numerous others including Upper House MP Jeremy Buckingham supported the notion for Ms Folbigg to be released in light of the new findings, which Deputy NSW Nationals leader Bronnie Taylor stated was ‘profound’.