Nearly six months after two young siblings were tragically found dead in their Massachusetts home, medical examiners have finally revealed their causes of death: a disturbing combination of asphyxia and drug intoxication.
The findings come as two mothers previously reported by Los Angeles Magazine, Janette MacAusland of Massachusetts and Corie Walsh of Illinois, face murder prosecutions that have the public comparing them to the high-profile Lindsay Clancy case.
According to the Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, 7-year-old Kai MacAusland and his 6-year-old sister, Ella, died from mechanical asphyxia and acute intoxication involving multiple medications. Their deaths were ruled homicides.
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The substances identified included zolpidem, commonly known as Ambien, a prescription sleep medication; lorazepam, sold under the brand name Ativan and used to treat anxiety; and two over-the-counter pain relievers, acetaminophen and ibuprofen.
The October 21 announcement came just two days after a Norfolk County grand jury indicted their mother, Janette MacAusland, 49, on two counts of first-degree murder.
As Los Angeles previously reported, MacAusland allegedly fled to Vermont after killing her children at the family’s Wellesley home in April. Police say she arrived at her aunt’s house with a serious neck injury and confessed to strangling the children before attempting to take her own life. MacAusland reportedly also tried to jump off a bridge, but told her aunt she couldn’t go through with it.
Police later discovered Kai and Ella dead in a bed inside the home.
The killings occurred amid a contentious divorce and custody dispute between MacAusland and her husband, Samuel. At a September hearing, defense attorney Joseph Krowski Jr. unsuccessfully sought dismissal of the charges or his client’s release, arguing that prosecutors had yet to obtain the medical examiner’s findings.
Krowski also addressed comparisons to Clancy, whose triple-murder trial ended in a mistrial, telling reporters that MacAusland had her own mental-health history and should not simply be treated as another version of Clancy. MacAusland has pleaded not guilty and remains held without bail. Her arraignment in Norfolk Superior Court is scheduled for November 3.
Meanwhile, in Illinois, Corie Walsh, 40, has pleaded not guilty to three co
unts of first-degree murder in the September 1 death of her 2-year-old son, Barrett. The toddler was tragically discovered hanging in the basement of the family’s Frankfort home. His death was attributed to asphyxia caused by ligature compression of the neck.
Prosecutors allege Walsh had become intensely interested in the Lindsay Clancy trial, even chatting about the case in a group text with friends just hours before her son was discovered.
According to court documents, Walsh allegedly told investigators that she believed her son was the devil or the Antichrist. Prosecutors also alleged she had discussed harming her husband and other children. Her defense attorneys, including Andrea Lyon, who previously represented Casey Anthony, have argued that Walsh was experiencing a severe psychiatric episode. They have dismissed all claims that she was copying Clancy.
Walsh remains in custody after a judge denied pretrial release. Her husband attended her September 24 court appearance, and her next hearing is scheduled for October 26.
The three cases have sparked serious debates over mental illness and criminal responsibility, although the circumstances and available evidence differ significantly.
For MacAusland, the newly released medical findings and first-degree murder indictments are a major development after months of uncertainty surrounding her children’s deaths.
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