Judge Grants Custody to Mother Who Talked of Killing Children, Then Kills Them

Leannah Jean Gardipe, a 35-year-old Montana woman, has recently pleaded guilty to the deliberate homicide of her two young children, aged 3 and 5. Gardipe, arrested and booked into the Missoula County Jail, asserted during her plea that she "saved her babies" by killing them. The sentencing is scheduled for 10 a.m. on November 20, and according to the plea agreement, the prosecutors will recommend consecutive life terms on two counts of deliberate homicide. Additionally, Gardipe is required to pay court fees amounting to $1,050.

The tragic incident occurred on November 19, 2021, when the defendant’s mother contacted 911 after receiving a call from Gardipe, who claimed to have “saved” her 3-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son. The children's grandmother, alarmed by the implications of the call, questioned Gardipe if this meant she had killed the children, Jane and John Doe, which led to Gardipe breaking down in tears. Following this conversation, Gardipe called 911 herself to "report a murder" and mentioned that her mother should also be calling.

Gardipe disclosed to the officials that she had stabbed her children that morning on her bed using a knife. She also requested medical help as she heard one of her children making noises. During the call, she expressed, “I was supposed to die today.” When the deputies arrived at her residence, Gardipe momentarily left her home but subsequently returned inside and locked the door. Despite the dispatcher’s assurances that the deputies were there to help, Gardipe responded, “No, they are not, not for what I did.”

Upon entering the residence, the deputies discovered the children in a bedroom, tucked into bedsheets, with lacerations on their throats, and defensive wounds on their hands and fingers. A medical examination later confirmed the children’s deaths. Additionally, a bloody serrated steak knife was found under the bed, and a pool of blood was discovered in the 3-year-old girl’s bedroom. A chilling note found at the threshold of the bedroom read, “[i]t was the only way that we all wouldn’t burn, now I’m the only one of us that will.”

The children's father had previously expressed concerns about Gardipe’s mental health to local outlet Montana Right Now. He reported an incident where Gardipe, during a mental health episode, visited an emergency room claiming she was harming her children. However, she later retracted this statement, attributing it to her mental health challenges. Subsequently, Child Protective Services granted the children's father temporary custody, while Gardipe underwent weekly therapy, regularly consulted her doctor, and completed a three-week program at the Pathways Treatment Center in Kalispell. Despite these efforts, a court eventually awarded Gardipe primary custody of the children, granting their father visitation rights every Wednesday and two weekends a month.

This tragic case highlights the urgent need for improved mental health support and more thorough evaluations in child custody cases. It is a stark reminder that mental health issues, if left unaddressed, can lead to devastating consequences.
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