Dad Had Just Won Custody of Slain Kids

The Arizona woman who tried to kill herself Saturday after allegedly murdering her two children had lost custody of them just three days before. The autopsy points to poison as the killer, and the AP's report on Marilyn Edge focuses on the "contentious" custody battle she had been in for years with her ex-husband, who lives in Georgia. The attorney for her ex says the 42-year-old texted Mark Edge on Friday saying she planned to bring daughter Faith and son Jaelen, 9 and 13 respectively, to him on Sunday. Instead, Mark Edge was informed of the kids' deaths on Sunday morning. He has since been hospitalized for duress.

The AP digs into the complicated custody back story: The two divorced in December 2007 and Marilyn was awarded full custody about two years later. But Mark was allegedly prevented by his ex from seeing the kids for a year and a half. ABC15 reports that Mark was granted visitation rights last September; within a week, Marilyn announced she was moving from Georgia to Scottsdale. Mark filed for full custody in December, and the judge ruled in his favor Wednesday, saying Marilyn was alienating him from the kids. An eerie line contained in an email from Marilyn filed among the court documents: "I would never intentionally hurt my children." She could face the death penalty. (More Marilyn Edge stories.)