Sarah Jane Robinson

Sarah Jane Robinson (née Tennant; May 26, 1838 – January 3, 1906), known as The Boston Borgia, was an Irish-born American serial killer who poisoned her family members and other people from 1881 to 1886, with the help of her accomplices Thomas R. Smith and Dr. Charles C. Beers. She was initially sentenced to death for the poisoning of her brother-in-law, but the verdict was later changed to life imprisonment, with Robinson dying behind bars.

Early life Sarah Jane Tennant was born and raised in Newtownhamilton, a small town in County Armagh in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland; she emigrated to Massachusetts with her sister when she was fourteen or fifteen years old. She married Moses Robinson in July 1858, thus becoming Sarah Jane Robinson. Over the course of their marriage, the couple had eight children, five of whom survived infancy. They initially settled in Sherborn, Massachusetts, Using this knowledge, Dr. White preserved parts of William's stomach for later analysis at Harvard College, which revealed large quantities of arsenic. White then informed the authorities, who swiftly arrested Robinson and Smith, who had just arrived at the house. After a quick prayer for the mother and the son, the duo were taken to the police station for questioning. In October 1886, the trio were indicted for William and Lizzie's murders, with all of them pleading not guilty on every charge at their arraignment on December 14, 1886. During this whole ordeal, Robinson tried to feign insanity, but this was later refuted by Dr. Kelly of the McLean Asylum.

Before the trial started, a nolle prosequi was entered by Attorney General A. J. Waterman, dismissing the charges against Thomas Smith and Charles Beers. On December 13, 1887, the trial against Sarah Jane for the murder of her son, William, began. The six-day long trial was followed by twenty-four hours of jury deliberation and resulted in a hung jury.

After her sentence was announced, and despite the fact a majority of the public disdained her, a petition was started to commute Robinson's sentence. Although the Governor's Council allegedly was against such a decision, Emma M. Robinson, daughter, age 10, poisoned on September 6, 1884 Annie Freeman, sister, age about 45, poisoned on February 28, 1885 Prince Arthur Freeman, brother-in-law, age 33, poisoned on June 27, 1885. After his death, Robinson adopted his son and received the $2,000 he had been insured for in order to care for the child.