'Suicide blonde' kills three people while trying to kill herself

Last updated at 18:15pm on 31st October 2007

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A model who killed three people while trying to commit suicide has been told she faces up to ten years in jail.

Stunning Jeanette Sliwinski deliberately rammed her car into another vehicle that had stopped at a red light.

The three occupants of the car were killed instantly in the horror smash - while Sliwinski only suffered a broken ankle in the accident, which happened two years ago.

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Jeanette Sliwinski killed three other people while trying to kill herself - and escaped with just a broken ankle

The trial of the former 23-year-old lingerie model has captivated America, with her model photos being posted on numerous blogs and websites.

She became known as the "suicide blonde" in reference to the INXS song of that title.

Sliwinski was depressed and delusional when she jumped into her car and raced through a Chicago suburb.

Prosecutors said she had jumped three red lights before slamming into a car containing musicians Michael Dahlquist,39, John Glick,35, and Douglas Meis,29.

The impact of the collision was so fierce their car was up ended and crashed down on the pavement killed all three instantly.

The men were in a Honda Civic waiting at traffic lights when Sliwinski's car struck them from behind.

Police said she was travelling at 70mph and made no attempt to brake.

The model was on her way to see a psychiatrist after a bust-up with her mum.

As a model she had appeared in adverts for Lee Jeans and Fredericks of Hollywood, the famous lingerie store.

She also featured in a calendar for Chicago's sexiest girls.

A judge found the model guilty on three counts of reckless homicide, but said she was mentally ill at the time.

Sliwinski will be held in a secure unit until she is deemed fit to transfer to prison.

Judge Garritt Howard told her she faces up to ten years when he sentences her next month.

The family of one of the victims told ABC News after the case that he was sorry she had not carried out her death wish.

"The one thing that would have brought this thing to closure would have been had she been successful in what she set out to do that day," David Meis, brother of victim Douglas Meis.