FULL TEXT: A double murder has been committed at Bar-sur-Aube, France, by a little girl named Marie Doiselet, who is only 13 years old. She was engaged as nursemaid in the house of a neighbour, named Caratnauti, and was entrusted with the care of his two children, one aged six months and the other two years and a-half. The youngest died suddenly on June 23, and the other under precisely similar circumstances on July 23. Suspicions were excited, and it turned out that the youthful murderess had killed each of them by placing a handkerchief over the mouth and nose, and pressing heavily on the chest until suffocation ensued. She confessed the crime and the methods of its execution, and said she wanted to get rid of the trouble of looking after the children.
[Untitled, The Otago Daily Times (Dunedin, New Zealand), Jan. 15, 1889, p. 2]
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NOTE: Two murders, on separate occasions, are attributed to Marie Doiselet. In our collection of female serial killer case, we ordinarily keep to victim count of three or more (including failed attempts), but in cases where the killer is so young it seems reasonable to make an exception. Cases of children who murder on more than one occasion are, it goes without saying, important sources worthy of study for those who wish to understand the crime of serial killing and the mentality, methods and motives of such killers.
