Double homicide conviction upheld for Naperville woman who killed 2 children, 2 dogs

Elzbieta Plackowska | Illinois States Attorney's office

A 48-year-old Naperville woman charged in a 2012 double homicide  Elzbieta Plackowska, 48, had her conviction affirmed Monday in Illinois Appellate Courts in Du Page County.

Elzbieta Plackowska was charged Dec. 15, 2017 in the double murder of her 7-year-old son and a 5-year-old girl who she was babysitting, as well as two dogs in 2012 in Naperville, according to the State’s Attorney’s office.

On Oct. 30, 2012, Plackowska told the children to get ready for bed, but instead of getting ready for bed the children began jumping on the bed in the master bedroom, prosecutors said.

After grabbing a kitchen knife, Plackowska went to the master bedroom and began stabbing her son repeatedly, stabbed the 5-year-old girl repeatedly and killed the two family dogs before driving to a family friend’s home, prosecutors said.

At trial Plackowska did not deny killing the two children and dogs, but instead claimed the defense of insanity, prosecutors said.

Her defense was rejected and the courts ruled that she had the capacity to understand that what she was doing was wrong because after the murders she made many attempts to hide it including, putting the knife down a garbage disposal, threw away her cellphone, created a story that someone broke in a committed the murders and changed her story multiple times, prosecutors said.

Plackowska was sentenced to natural life in prison Sept. 2017, and that charge was upheld Monday.