Massachusetts Mom Allegedly Strangled Her Two Children, Then Confessed to Her Aunt
A Wellesley, Massachusetts mother has been charged with two counts of murder after she allegedly confessed to strangling her two young children in April, then fled to Vermont where she told her aunt what she had done.
Janette MacAusland, 49, reportedly said she "wanted the three of us to go to God together," but her own attempt at suicide did not succeed.
How Investigators Learned What Happened
The case came to light on a Friday night when MacAusland arrived at her aunt's home in Bennington, Vermont, bleeding and visibly distraught with a neck injury. She told officers who responded to the scene, "I strangled them and then tried to kill myself." Court documents detail that she also told her aunt she had driven to the Quechee Gorge Bridge in Vermont and tried to jump, but ultimately could not go through with it.
Police immediately contacted authorities in Massachusetts. When officers responded to MacAusland's home in Wellesley, they found the bodies of her two children: Kai, 7, and Ella, 6. MacAusland was taken into custody in Vermont and waived extradition. She was charged by the Norfolk District Attorney's Office with two murder counts and is expected to appear in a Massachusetts court within two weeks.
What Investigators Found
Court documents released by prosecutors described the scene at the Wellesley home in detail. MacAusland is described as an acupuncturist, and the killings appear to have taken place amid a bitter divorce proceeding. Investigators say the children were strangled individually, and MacAusland's statements to both her aunt and police amount to a direct confession to the crimes.
The court documents also describe a custody dispute underlying the case. MacAusland's marriage had reportedly been unraveling and the family had been engaged in divorce proceedings at the time of the killings. Prosecutors have not indicated whether they plan to seek the death penalty.
What She Said
The phrases MacAusland allegedly used when she arrived at her aunt's home have become central to the case against her. The statement "I wanted the three of us to go to God together but it didn't work" is quoted directly in court documents and has been widely reported. Her statement to police confirming she strangled the children also appears in the affidavit.
Investigators noted that MacAusland had a neck injury consistent with a self-inflicted attempt, lending credibility to the account she provided at her aunt's home. Cases involving parental killings of children are among the most serious charges that can be brought in Massachusetts courts, carrying potential sentences of life in prison.
What Comes Next
MacAusland's extradition from Vermont was completed without resistance. She will face the murder charges in Norfolk County, which covers the Wellesley area south of Boston. Her attorneys have not publicly stated a defense position. The case is expected to draw significant attention given the explicit nature of the alleged confession and the ages of the children involved.
The Wellesley community, an affluent suburb known for its schools and the Wellesley College campus, was shaken by the news. Local officials confirmed that Kai and Ella had been enrolled in the local school system. Their deaths join a painful pattern of custody cases that have drawn renewed attention to how courts handle cases at the intersection of mental health crises and domestic disputes in recent years.
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