Woman Whose Children Died After Vaccinations Charged With Murder

A grand jury indicted Andrea Shaw, 23, for allegedly murdering her 18-month-old twins.

An influenza vaccine in a doctor's office in Coral Gables, Fla., on Sept. 15, 2025. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

A woman who is suing a national pediatrics group over the deaths of her children has been charged with first-degree murder.

Andrea Shaw, 23, was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of first-degree murder in the 2025 deaths of her 18-month-old twins, the Payette Police Department in Idaho said in a June 30 statement.

Police said the charges were “the result of a lengthy and thorough investigation conducted by the Payette Police Department, with invaluable assistance from numerous partner agencies.”

The department did not respond to requests for comment on the indictment by the time of publication.

Joseph Filicetti, a lawyer representing Shaw, did not return a request for comment.

Filicetti, during a hearing on Thursday, said he plans to request bond for Shaw and that she gave birth to a new baby in June, KTVB-TV reported.

Shaw is a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed in January by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s former group against the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The suit alleges the AAP violated federal law by saying that vaccines on the federal vaccine schedule are safe while taking donations from vaccine companies.

The twins received three vaccines each during a doctor’s visit in April 2025, according to Shaw. The day after, they showed symptoms such as blue lips and sunken eyes, prompting the family to take them to the emergency room, where a physician diagnosed a post-immunization reaction.

The twins died eight days after the doctor’s visit.

Shaw said in a previous interview with Children’s Health Defense, Kennedy’s former group, that the children were healthy before receiving the vaccines. She said that she believes their deaths were caused by the shots.

Shaw warned the pediatrician that her family had a history of adverse reactions to the influenza vaccine, which was one of the vaccines administered, but that doctors ignored her warning because of AAP guidance, according to the lawsuit.

“AAP’s categorical safety claims, disseminated through pediatricians and public-facing materials, induced Mrs. Shaw to consent to vaccination despite her expressed concerns about family history,” the suit states.

“Those same categorical claims now form the basis for criminal suspicion against her, as investigators assume vaccines could not have caused her children’s deaths.”

The Payette Police Department had said on May 2, 2025, a day after the deaths, that it was investigating the deaths of twins discovered in bed by officers responding to a 911 call.

Shaw said in the interview that she informed police of the recent vaccinations, but that officers said the cause was not medical, and accused her of blacking out and suffocating her children.