A woman with a history of mental illness purposely walked her young niece and nephew into oncoming interstate traffic to commit a double-murder suicide, a prosecutor said Friday.
Marcelle Thibault, 39, was driving south on Interstate 495 in Lowell last week when she turned the car sharply, drove across the median and northbound lanes and began driving against traffic in the breakdown lane, authorities said.
She then stopped the car, removed her clothes and undressed the children, took both of them into her arms and walked onto the highway. She and the children were struck by two cars and killed.
"There are not many other scenarios I can think of that are as tragic as this one," District Attorney Gerry Leone said. "It is beyond belief, it is unimaginable, it is unspeakable, and it was a horrible tragedy."
The young victims were Kaleigh Lambert, 5, and Shane Lambert, 4, of Brentwood, N.H., who were the children of Thibault's twin sister....Leone said Thibault had picked up the youngsters Jan. 11 for a "pirate and princess weekend." Young said the woman, who had two teenage children, often took her sister's kids for special weekends.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=4156540