Victims
Jennifer
Jennifer Tinning was born on December 26, 1971. She was Marybeth Tinning's third child but the first one to die. When she was born she was kept in the hospital because she had a severe infection. She died eight days later and according to the autopsy report, she died of acute meningitis.
JosephJoseph Tinning was born on Janary 10, 1970. Marybeth's second child, but second to die. On January 20,1972, Marybeth rushed Joeseph into the hospital who she said had had some sort of seizure. He was revived and sent back home. A few hours later she returned with him but the doctors could not do anythign to save him that the second time. Marybeth told the doctors that she had put Joeseph to bed for a nap and when she checked on him later she found him tangled up in the sheets and his skin was blue. The doctors did not perform and autopsy but his death was said to be cardio-respiratory arrest.
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Barbara Ann
Barbara Tinning was born on May 31, 1967. She was Marybeth's first child and third to die. On March 2, 1972, Marybeth rushed her 4 1/2 year old daughter into the emergency room just six weeks after joeseph died because she was suffereing from convulsions. The doctors wanted to keep Barbabra over night but Marybeth refused to leave her there and took her home. A few hours later they both returned to the hospital but that time Barbara was unconscious. She later died at the hospital and the cause of her death was brain edema which is the swelling of the brain.
TimothyTimothy Tinning was born on Thanksgiving day on November 21, 1973. He was Marybeth's fourth child and the fourth to die. When he was only three weeks old, Marybeth found him in his crib dead. The doctors could not find anything wrong with him so they said the cause of his death was sudden infant death syndrome, SIDS.
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Nathan
Nathan was born on Easter sunday on March 30, 1975. He was the Tinnings fifth child and fifth to die. On September 2, 1975, Marybeth rushed him to the hospital and told the doctors that she noticed him not breathing while she was driving. The doctors could not find what was the cause of the death so they just said it was acute pulmonary
Jonathan
Jonathan was born on November 19, 1979. He was the Tinning's eighth child and seventh to die. Marybeth rushed him to the hospital because he was unconcious and even the specialists at the hospital could not figure out why he was unconcious so they sent him back home. Three days later he was again rushed to the hospital but there was nothing they could do because he was already dead. The cause of him death was cardio-pulmonary arrest.
Tami Lynne
On August 22, 1985 The Tinning's had another girl, Tami Lynne. The doctors monitored her for four months and she was a healthy child. On December 20th Tami Lynne died and the
Suspects
Marybeth TinningThe only suspect of all the death of the Tinning children was Marybeth Tinning herself. It wasn't until after half her children died when people started to suspect things. The doctors just assumed that they all died of natural causes and the "death gene". Marybeth Tinning was brought into questioning on February 4, 1986.
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Psychological Evidence
Since Marybeth was never suspected of committing any type murder when her children died, she was never evaluated. It wasn’t until all her children died that she was caught. Dr. Michael Baden said that the deaths of the Tinning children were a result of Marybeth suffering from acute Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome. Dr. Baden described Marybeth Tinning as a sympathy junky. He said, "She liked the attention of people feeling sorry for her from the loss of her children."