Is Kathleen Folbigg innocent after all?

Kathleen Folbigg, a mother of four who lived in Thornton, New South Wales, is serving a minimum 25-year prison sentence after being convicted in 2003 of the murder of her three children, Patrick, Sarah, and Laura, and the manslaughter of her first child, Caleb. 

Each died suddenly between 1989 and 1999, aged between 19 days and 18 months.  

Folbigg now has five years left of a 25-year sentence. Her supporters say there’s no pathological or medical basis for concluding homicide in any of the Folbigg children’s deaths.  

Listen to the full episode below:

In this episode, we speak to Folbigg’s childhood friend, Tracy Chapman, who speaks to her daily from the phone in prison. Tracey’s letters with Kathleen were also crucial evidence in the 2019 inquiry into Folbigg’s case.  

An open letter with new genetic evidence that may prove Folbigg’s innocence was signed by 90 of the world’s leading genetic scientists, and they believed Folbigg should be released from jail. 

“She is innocent, and the information she has given me over the years just in conversations is consistent with everything she said on the stand in 2019,” Chapman said. 

Chapman encouraged Folbigg to have hope and faith along the way and said Folbigg had always been resilient in prison. 

“We always say the truth keeps us alive because it is. There have been so many challenging moments. I think by far the worst was the final week of 2019.”  

Subscribe to The Briefing, Australia's fastest-growing news podcast on Listnr today. The Briefing serves up the latest news headlines and a deep dive into a topic affecting you. All in under 20 minutes.