Australia Mom Arrested in Deaths of 8 Kids

Australia police said from the start that the horrific murder of eight children inside a home was an isolated incident and that the public need not fear a killer on the loose. Now we know why: They have arrested a 37-year-old woman—mother to seven of the kids and an aunt to the eighth—on murder charges after the apparent stabbing spree, reports ABC News of Australia. The still-unidentified woman also was found inside the Cairns home with serious stab wounds to her chest and neck.

She is in stable condition under police guard, "awake, lucid, and able to speak," say police. The victims ranged in age from 18 months to 15 years. It was another sibling, a 20-year-old brother, who found them inside the home upon returning from shopping yesterday morning, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. "It's not a problem house, as has been speculated," says a detective. "This is just an ordinary neighborhood with a lot of good people and a lot of kids in the area." (More Australia stories.)