Kathleen Folbigg, who has recently been freed from a 20-year wrongful imprisonment sentence, has been offered A$2m (£975,580, $1.3m) by the Australian government as compensation for her ordeal. Once deemed "Australia's worst mother" due to her conviction for the deaths of her four children, Folbigg’s case is now recognized as one of the most significant miscarriages of justice in Australia’s history. In 2003, she was convicted of murdering her infants—Caleb, Patrick, Sarah, and Laura—who died between 1989 and 1999 under tragic circumstances. However, a recent judicial review suggested that the children's deaths may have been due to a rare genetic condition.
Legal experts previously anticipated a compensation payout potentially exceeding A$10m for Folbigg, yet her lawyer, Rhanee Rego, denounced the government’s A$2m offer as "profoundly unfair and unjust," claiming it is insufficient in light of her circumstances. Attorney General Michael Daley defended the government's decision, stating it had been thoroughly considered, although the specifics of the decision remain confidential at Folbigg's request.
The prosecution in her original trial depicted her as emotionally unstable, citing her diaries as evidence of her alleged guilt. Folbigg maintained her innocence throughout her incarceration, and in 2023, the inquiry that exonerated her suggested a natural cause of death due to genetic issues. Rego highlighted the stark disparity in compensation, comparing Folbigg’s situation to that of Lindy Chamberlain, who received A$1.7m for her wrongful conviction and three years in prison for the death of her daughter, suggesting that Folbigg’s 20 years of imprisonment warranted a significantly higher compensation. Experts in the field anticipate that her final compensation could eventually reach up to A$20m, given the historical context and severity of her wrongful imprisonment.
