Massachusetts Mother Accused of Strangling Two Children Asks Judge to Set Her Free
A Massachusetts mother accused of killing her two young children asked a judge to release her from custody and dismiss the murder case against her. The judge rejected that request and ordered her to remain jailed without bail.
Janette MacAusland, 49, faces two counts of first-degree murder in the April deaths of her 7-year-old son, Kai, and her 6-year-old daughter, Ella. Her attorney, Joseph Krowski, argued that prosecutors had not presented enough information to justify keeping MacAusland behind bars, according to reporting cited in the case.
The court did not agree. MacAusland remains in custody as the case moves forward, and she has pleaded not guilty.
The allegations began when MacAusland reportedly fled Massachusetts for Vermont after the children were killed. Police say she arrived at her aunt’s home in Bennington on April 24 with a bloody gash on her neck. She was described as hysterical and allegedly confessed to killing her children.
A Vermont police report cited by CBS News said MacAusland told her aunt, “I wanted the three of us to go to God together but it didn’t work.” She later told an officer, “I strangled them and then I tried to kill myself.” According to the source report, MacAusland said the children were in her bed.
Wellesley police found Kai and Ella dead inside the family’s home on Edgemoor Avenue. Officers described blood spatter throughout the scene. MacAusland then traveled roughly 140 miles to Vermont, where she was arrested as a fugitive from justice. She waived extradition and was returned to Massachusetts to face the murder charges.
The deaths came during a bitter divorce and custody dispute involving MacAusland and her estranged husband, Samuel MacAusland. The Post reported that Samuel filed for divorce in October after nine years of marriage. He sought custody of the children and possession of the family home. MacAusland filed a counterclaim seeking the same.
Just three days before the children were killed, a guardian was appointed to investigate the custody dispute and make recommendations to the court. The timing is part of the background prosecutors and defense attorneys are dealing with as the case continues.
Prosecutors told the court that they still had not received the official manner and means of death from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. A grand jury that had been hearing the case was dismissed and is expected to be reconvened after those results arrive.
MacAusland’s next court date is set for late October.
Her attorneys are also reportedly preparing to focus on her mental condition. Krowski argued that his client should not be treated as “Lindsay Clancy 2.0,” a reference to the Massachusetts mother who admitted strangling her three children but claimed she was suffering from postpartum psychosis.
“There’s been a discussion, a discourse opened up in this country about whether or not we want to criminalize mental illness,” Krowski said, according to the Post.
The judge’s decision means MacAusland will remain in custody while prosecutors await the medical examiner’s findings and prepare to continue the case. The charges remain allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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