The BURKLE Twin girls - Newborns (2012)/ Convicted: Mother; Jackie Burkle - Huxley IA

Mother 'deliberately killed twin newborn baby daughters then left them in the trunk of her car'
By Hannah Roberts

Last updated at 8:39 AM on 12th January 2012

Killer: An woman allegedly killed her newborn twin daughters and abandoned them in the trunk of her car, after giving birth at home.

Jackie
Burkle, 22, of Huxley, Iowa, has been charged with two counts of
first-degree murder after police found the infants' bodies in her car.

Incredibly
the car was parked in front of her home, across the street from the
police department in the town of about 2,800 people, about 20 milesnorth of Des Moines.

According to court records, police went to the duplex where Burkle lived after receiving a call to check on her.

Court records show Burkle was seen January 5 at work and 'appeared to be pregnant.' She was seen at work two days later and did not appear to be pregnant 'with a completely different appearance.'

Police have released few details but said Wednesday that Burkle lived with her parents.

Huxley Police Chief Mark Pote said Burkle is not married and that investigators were working to identity the children's father. Burkle has no other children, he said.

Accused: Burkle has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder after police found the infants' bodies in her car

He would not say how the children died.

'There's going to be a lot of unanswered questions for everyone, including law enforcement, for a while,' the chief said.

Autopsies were performed Monday but final results, including lab tests, will not be available for four to six weeks.

House of horror: Incredibly the car was parked in front of her home, across the street from the police department Under arrest: Police went to the duplex where Burkle lived after receiving a call to check on her Burkle made her initial court appearance Wednesday and was being held in the Story County jail on $1 million bond.

Bill Walljasper, a spokesman for Casey's General Store, said a co-worker of Burkle's called police after noticing a physical change in her appearance and became concerned about her health.

He said Burkle, who had worked at the store for more than six months, was scheduled to work the day police were called. She had come into the store but Walljasper said he didn't know if she came in to work or as a customer.

The store is only a few blocks from Burkle's home.

'It's a very tragic event,' he said. 'It's a very hard one to cope with.'

Shocking: Colleagues at the convenience store where Jackie worked noticed that she was no longer pregnant Michael Motsinger, special agent in charge with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, said the infants survived the birth but he did not know if they were full-term.

Court records show when police arrived at her home Burkle agreed to go to a hospital and have a blood test that indicated she had been recently pregnant. She acknowledged she gave birth to twins and told officers where to find the bodies.

She also acknowledged that she 'acted or committed certain acts to terminate the lives' of the babies on January 6, court records show.

Motsinger declined to elaborate on how the infants were killed, citing the ongoing investigation.

A preliminary hearing was scheduled for January 20. If convicted of first-degree murder, Burkle would face a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.

Huxley Mother Charged in Death of Twins

January 11, 2012


Photos (1)

A Huxley woman faces murder charges for allegedly killing her twins.

Jackie Nichole Burkle, 22, Huxley, has been charged with two counts
of first degree murder for allegedly killing her twin babies, according
to a criminal complaint.

Huxley Police Chief Mark Pote said that he was told Burkle may have
given birth because she appeared pregnant Jan. 5 and no longer seemed to
be pregnant on Jan. 7, a complaint said.

Twin babies were found dead, and police say Burkle admitted to
causing their deaths. Burkle was charged Tuesday afternoon, according to
a release from the Division of Criminal Investigation. She is currently
being held in the Story County Jail on a $500,000 bond, according to
jail records. The charges are class A felonies, punishable by life in
prison.

http://ames.patch.com/articles/huxley-mother-charged-in-death-of-twins-and-more-in-ames-area-crime-round-up

Iowa mom pleads guilty in death of newborn twins

August 16, 2012 2:00 pm

NEVADA, Iowa (AP) — A central Iowa woman charged in the deaths of her newborn twins has pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder in a plea agreement with prosecutors.

The Ames Tribune says Jackie Burkle, of Huxley, pleaded guilty Thursday in Story County District Court. Her attorney, Maria Ruhtenberg, says Burkle was sentenced to two 50-year-old prison sentences to be served concurrently.

Ruhtenberg says Burkle did not make any statements at the hearing.

Burkle had been charged with first-degree murder. She was arrested in January after the bodies of the twin girls were found in the trunk of her car in Huxley.

Ruhtenberg declined to comment specifically about the plea bargain in the case.

http://wcfcourier.com/news/local/iowa-mom-pleads-guilty-in-death-of-newborn-twins/article_8fbcf82a-e7d4-11e1-8fa9-0019bb2963f4.html