An acupuncturist mother accused of killing her two young children in their Massachusetts home pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder on Tuesday. Janette MacAusland, 49, appeared in Norfolk Superior Court, where she sobbed throughout her arraignment. She was indicted last month in the April deaths of her seven-year-old son, Kai, and six-year-old daughter, Ella.
Autopsy results indicated that the siblings died from strangulation and the combined effects of several substances. The exact substances identified included zolpidem, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and lorazepam.
Following the hearing, MacAusland's defense attorney, Joseph Krowski Jr., referenced her history of mental health struggles and treatment, stating that she is "broken." He indicated that an insanity defense remains a possibility, drawing parallels to the Lindsay Clancy case and the broader conversation surrounding women's mental health care. Krowski emphasized the need to address such issues before tragedies occur.
MacAusland faces a potential sentence of life in prison without parole if convicted. Judge Peter B. Krupp ordered her held without bail, a decision her attorney did not contest. However, Krowski stated he may seek bail after reviewing approximately 2,000 pages of evidence recently provided by the prosecution. The judge also agreed to temporarily seal the prosecution's statement of the case, which Krowski described as a "glorified press release" containing details potentially designed to sway a jury.
MacAusland is scheduled for her next court appearance on December 16, though her attorney has requested her absence. She was arrested on April 24 at her aunt's home in Vermont, where she had fled after the killings. Police reported that she arrived distraught and with a visible neck injury, confessing to her aunt that she had killed Kai and Ella. She later told investigators that she had planned for herself and the children "to go to God together."
Authorities noted that MacAusland had also driven to the Quechee Gorge Bridge in Vermont with the intention of ending her own life but ultimately did not jump. At the time of the children's deaths, MacAusland and her estranged husband, Samuel, were involved in a contentious divorce. Court documents indicated the divorce proceedings involved disputes over child custody and the family's three-bedroom home. Samuel MacAusland had filed for divorce in October 2025, and the couple had agreed to a court-appointed guardian for Kai and Ella at a hearing scheduled for May 5, but the children were killed before this hearing could take place. Court documents previously obtained by the Daily Mail also revealed that before their marital difficulties, MacAusland had publicly praised Samuel on social media as a devoted husband and father.