Death of two children from medical neglect highlights Idaho law that grants religious freedom to parents but not to children

KBOI TV  -  Idaho     May 19, 2011

Dying for religion: 'They use fear - that's their main weapon'

By Mike Murad

CALDWELL, Idaho - Back in March, two very sick children from two different families in Canyon County died, likely from untreated pneumonia. We'll never know for sure, because they were never taken to the doctor.

For more than 99-percent of Idahoans, not getting medical care for a gravely sick child could be considered a crime. But for one group, it's perfectly legal. And some say it's time for it to stop.

"Too many little kids are dying over needless things that can be cured," says a man we're calling Jacob. He's a former member of the Followers of Christ Church, which has at least three branches here in the Treasure Valley, including one in Caldwell, another near Lake Lowell and one on Ten Mile in Meridian.

We've agreed to protect Jacob's identity because he still has active ties to the church, and is worried about the fallout of our investigation to current members.

"They use fear a lot, that's their main weapon," says Jacob. "It starts young. You start hearing about Hell and Lake of Fire real early."

The church believes in faith healing over medical intervention when it comes to treating their children. Jacob says even members of his own family have died from a lack of medical care.

"They really believe that praying and laying hands on is going to cure stuff," says Jacob.

Toddler Preston Bowers died March 24th at his Caldwell home. Vicki DeGeus-Morris, the Canyon County Coroner, says his parents described a rattle in the boy's chest, which eventually got worse, and a lack of energy. Preston would have turned two years old next week.

"I can't believe it's happening in this day and age, I really can't," says Jacob.

Rockwell Sevy also died at a home in Caldwell. His death occurred March 30th. The coroner believes he, like Preston, also died from untreated pneumonia. Rockwell was 14-years old.

Peaceful Valley Cemetery in Canyon County is one of the main cemeteries used by the Followers of Christ, and there's a high number of children buried in the cemetery.

DeGeus-Morris did not want to speculate on how many sick children might have been saved had their parents sought medical attention. She did say a high number of children buried in Peaceful Valley were the result of stillbirths.

"I'm sure there's a higher mortality rate because they do not seek medical attention for instances that could be reversed," said DeGues-Morris.

DeGues-Morris says she hasn't done an autopsy on a Followers of Christ child in years, because in Idaho it's not illegal for a parent or guardian to choose prayer over medicine as treatment for a sick child.

Idaho statute 18-1501 outlines the law that a parent who "chooses...treatment by prayer...shall not...have violated the duty of care to such child."

Canyon County Prosecutor Bryan Taylor says his hands are tied when it comes to punishing parents who choose faith healing over medicine, even to the very end.

"If they don't want to have their children go to a doctor, as long as they haven't caused the injuries, then we don't really have a leg to stand on in exploring criminal charges," says Taylor.

"I guess religious freedom means you can do almost anything you want. Especially if the people you're doing it to have no voice," says Jacob.

The Followers of Christ Church also has branches in Oregon, which is another state that grants lots of freedom when it comes to faith healing. But that could be changing.

Earlier this year, the Oregon House voted unanimously, 59-0, to remove legal protection for parents who decline medical intervention in the case of a sick child based on religious reasons. Discussion in the Oregon Senate started Thursday.

This article was found at:

http://www.kboi2.com/news/local/122269274.html

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Wausau Daily Herald   -  Wisconsin     April 28, 2011

Judge Vincent Howard denies appeals of Dale and Leilani Neumann in prayer death convictions



The Weston parents convicted of second degree reckless homicide in the death of their daughter, Madeline Kara Neumann have lost their appeal for new trials. Marathon County Judge Vincent Howard ruled this afternoon to deny the post-conviction motions of Dale and Leilani Neumann.

Kara died March 23, 2008, from complications of undiagnosed diabetes while the Neumanns, who believe in faith healing, prayed for the girl's recovery.

Dale Neumann argued he should get a new trial because jurors in his prayer-death trial could have been biased after learning that his wife was previously convicted in the case. Leilani also appealed on grounds she was improperly defended in a separate second-degree homicide trial in 2009.

Judge Howard, who oversaw the separate trials for Dale and Leilani, wrote that “hindsight” was not enough reason to overturn “strategic decisions” made by the couple’s attorneys.

Dale’s defense attorney and prosecutors came to a joint decision to inform the jury of Leilani’s prior conviction, rather than risk members of the jury who were unaware of the conviction finding out at trial, Howard wrote.

“It is admittedly extraordinary to actually inform potential jurors of a prior conviction of a co-defendant, but there is no real denying that these trials were also very extraordinary,” Howard wrote.

Leilani’s argument that her trial attorney should have put stronger emphasis on her sincere belief that prayer is a form of treatment also was rejected by Howard. The judge wrote that attorney Gene Linehan had to make a quick decision during his closing argument, following prosecutors’ attempt to portray Leilani as a “religious extremist.”

“Hindsight can sometimes reveal places where there is room for improvement,” Howard wrote. “Trial counsel certainly could have better explained and emphasized the sincere belief defense...but room for improvement is not the same as deficient performance.”

Steve Miller, Dale Neumann’s attorney, said this afternoon that he hadn’t seen the decision yet and declined comment. A message left with Leilani Neumann’s attorney was not immediately returned.

Both Dale and Leilani Neumann were sentenced in October 2009 to six months in jail, 10 years probation and 120 hours of community service. Howard delayed the jail terms pending appeals.

They are also required to have their remaining juvenile children regularly examined by health officials.

Marathon County Assistant District Attorney LaMont Jacobson, who tried both Neumann cases, said his office was “certainly pleased with the outcome.”

The Neumanns’ attorneys raised some issues that “were troubling,” particularly the jury being informed of Leilani’s prior conviction, Jacobson said.

“We were all in a position where we had to balance (Dale’s) right to a fair trial, to a speedy trial and his right to have the trial occur in Marathon County,” Jacobson said. “And it was all with the backdrop of Leilani’s conviction.”

Jacobson said he suspects both Dale and Leilani Neumann will appeal Howard’s decision to the Court of Appeals, where the prosecution will be represented by the state attorney general’s office.


This article was found at:


http://www.wausaudailyherald.com/article/20110428/WDH0101/110428143/Judge-denies-Neumann-appeals-prayer-death-convictions


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The Oregonian - March 10, 2011

Oregon House unanimously votes to end faith healing exception

By Ryan Kost, The Oregonian


The Oregon House approved a bill Thursday that would remove legal protection for parents who choose faith healing over medical intervention when treating their children.

The bill passed unanimously, though two Republican representatives raised concerns that the legislation was taking the issue away from juries and sending the state down a slippery slope.

The legislation comes in response to an Oregon City church, the Followers of Christ, that has a long history of child deaths even though the conditions from which the children died were medically treatable.

Currently, spiritual treatment can be used as a defense against some* homicide charges. The bill would eliminate that defense and subject parents who chose faith healing over medical treatment at the expense of their child's life to mandatory sentencing under Measure 11.

"In the past two years alone, two children have died and another had been severely disfigured due to lack of medical care," said Democratic Rep. Carolyn Tomei, one of the bill's sponsors. "These children suffered needlessly. Their deaths were avoidable."

The bill has gained the support of several groups, including the Christian Science Church, and passed through legislative committee with unanimous support.

During the floor vote, two Republicans raised concerns about the bill. Rep. Mike McLane, R-Powell Butte, asked Tomei whether parents had ever been found not guilty as a result of the special defense. Tomei explained that in the most recent cases, grand juries have opted to charge the parents with other crimes to avoid the faith healing defense.

McLean, however, appeared undeterred.

"Oregon juries are quite capable of deciding," he said. "We are taking this issue away from juries and grand juries."

Rep. Jim Weidner, R-Yamhill, said he worried "we might be heading down a slippery slope." He said he prayed earlier in the day about his son's severe tonsillitis. His wife took his son to the doctor Thursday morning, he added, but "am I going to go to prison because I took the time to pray with my child?"

Both Republicans voted for the bill but pledged to seek amendments when the legislation passes through the Senate.

Tomei addressed the concerns in her closing remarks.

"Colleagues, this bill is not written ... to send anyone to prison," she said. "Our hope is that we're sending a certain group of people a message that it's against the law if their child is in grave danger ... to not give them medical care."

-- Ryan Kost; Follow me on twitter @oregonianryan

*CORRECTION: This article previously stated that spiritual healing can be used as a defense against all homicide charges. In fact, it can only be used as a defense for some homicide charges. For instance, it can not be used as a defense in the case of second-degree manslaughter.

This article was found at:

http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/03/bill_ending_faith_healing_exce.html

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Respectful Insolence - ScienceBlogs February 22, 2011

Oregon: On the verge of stripping legal protection based on religion from parents who choose prayer instead of medicine

by Orac


Over the years, I've said it many times. Competent adults have the right (or should have the right) to choose or refuse any medical treatment they wish for any reason. It doesn't matter how ridiculous the reason might be. If a competent adult believes that magic water (i.e., homeopathy) can cure him of cancer, we can try to persuade him that such a view is at odds with reality, but in the end personal autonomy and the right to self-determination mean that there will be a few people who will refuse effective medication in favor of quackery. A major force in motivating people to choose unscientific medical treatments is all too often religion. For instance, there's the nonsense that is Scientology castigating psychiatry and claiming that a device that looks as though it were constructed from leftover bits and pieces from the dumpster behind the local Radio Shack can diagnose all sorts of things about your personality and health. Then there are faith healers like John of God,Issam Nemeth, or Benny Hinn.

Most vulnerable of all to faith healing quackery are children. Over the years, I've been enormously depressed to record and comment on the deaths of children who had medical care withheld by their parents in favor of prayer because the parents were fervently convinced that prayer can heal. Madeline Neumann, for instance, died a miserable death from untreated diabetic ketoacidosis because her parents believed that the power of prayer would heal her. Madeline's was an utterly pointless death. Even up to very close to the end, doctors could have saved her with intravenous hydration, correction of her electrolyte disturbances, and, of course, insulin to bring her blood glucose under control. These same parents ignored the desperate entreaties of friends and neighors to take Madeline to the hospital as her health rapidly declined, proclaiming Madeline's illness a "test of faith" for them. Traditionally, the law has stated that adults can refuse treatment for any reason. In essence, adults are free to let themselves suffer and die, but they are not free to subject their children to the same fate by withholding medical care from them. Unfortunately, given the privileged position of religion in society, many states have laws that specifically protect religious child abuse through the withholding of medical care, as CHILD, Inc. documents in addition to the types of horrific deaths children have suffered due to religion-inspired lack of medical care. [see Links section below for related news articles]

Unfortunately, such is the pull of religion in this country that in many cases parents who let their children die by choosing prayer instead of medicine are often not prosecuted. When they are prosecuted, often they are not convicted. In addition, many states have religious exemption laws that make prosecution difficult or impossible. Indeed, I was shocked that Madeline's parents were actually not only prosecuted but her mother was actually convicted for her death despite the law being stacked against the prosecutors. Laws exempting parents using prayer instead of medicine to treat their children are indeed frighteningly common, but that's not the only way religious beliefs are privileged when it comes to children. Consider vaccine exemptions, for example. Nearly every state allows parents to refuse vaccines for their children based on religion alone. Many fewer states allow philosophical exemptions.

One state, it appears, is actually taking steps to try to strip legal protections for parents who choose to treat their children solely with faith and prayer:

Oregon lawmakers will take the first step today toward ending legal protections for parents who rely solely on faith to treat their dying children.

The bill targets the Followers of Christ, an Oregon City church with a long history of children dying from treatable medical conditions. A previous crackdown restricted but did not eliminate religious immunity from state criminal statutes.

Rep. Carolyn Tomei, D-Milwaukie, said deaths of three Followers children in recent years - all without medical intervention - prompted her to introduce the bill. "Such gross and unnecessary neglect cannot be allowed, even if the parents are well-meaning," Tomei said.

The legislation appears primed for approval. It has wide support both political parties, prosecutors, medical providers and child-protection groups, and there is no organized opposition.  [see full article below]

When I first discovered this story, quite frankly, I was surprised. Pleasantly surprised, but surprised. This is a very good thing indeed. Religion is not a permissible excuse for letting children die. Or, at least, it shouldn't be. Yet for over thirty years in Oregon, Followers of Christ have allowed at least 20 children to die of treatable or curable diseases. Just last year alone, for example, one notorious case was that of Neil Beagley, a 16-year-old boy who died of urinary obstruction that could easily have been treated. About a year ago, his parents were finally convicted of negligent homicide. However, deaths from faith healing appeared to be kept "all in the family," so to speak, because it was more than just Neil involved:

The two most recent cases to go to trial, involving the deaths of 15-month-old Ava Worthington and her teenage uncle, Neil Beagley, clearly showed that some church members will defy the law, even if it means a prison sentence.

Ava's parents testified that they believed their faith-healing rituals - prayer, anointing with oil, fasting and laying on of hands - were working right to the minute the girl died of bronchial pneumonia and a blood infection.

Beagley's parents testified that they never considered taking their dying son to a hospital or calling 9-1-1, even when he stopped breathing.

Ava's parents, Raylene and Carl Brent Worthington, were found not guilty of second-degree manslaughter. Beagley's parents, Jeffrey and Marci Beagley, were convicted of criminally negligent homicide last year and sentenced to 16 months in prison.

An additional case came to trial last year as well. This time around, it was a 7 month old infant with a hemangioma. The infant, Alayna Wyland, developed a hemangioma near her eye. This is generally a treatable condition, with the hemangioma being a benign tumor. However, even though hemangiomas are generally benign, that doesn't mean they can't do damage. They tend to grow slowly, and, being very vascular, they can develop considerable blood flow. In Alayna's case, the mass grew, pushing her eyeball down and its large blood vessels eroding the bone of her orbit. She was in danger of losing the vision in that eye. Yet her parents, Timothy and Rebecca Wyland, let the hemangioma grow to this size. In Alayna's case, precious time was lost, because, even though 95% of strawberry hemangiomas involute, the natural history of hemangiomas that do not is to grow slowly like this, sometimes to huge sizes. If they are treated early, often with surgical excision, this sort of horrific outcome can be prevented quite effectively.

It's long past time that every state eliminate the protections that allow loving but misguided parents to use their religion to justify denying life-saving medical care to their children because they believe that their faith will heal their children. Right now, Rep. Carolyn Tomei, D-Milwaukie is showing us the way in Oregon. One thing that gratifies me right now is that there appears to be little or no opposition to this law. Given how easily fundamentalists are able to hijack the concepts of freedom and parental duty to persuade even more moderate religious people that stripping protection for faith healing represents a direct assault on religious freedom, I would have expected more opposition. Maybe a couple of dead children and a baby going blind with a big red growth on her eyebrow made it hard to oppose a bill like this.

Still, the real test will come after the law is passed. The reason is that, stripped of protection based on religion, parents convicted of medical neglect leading to the death of a child could be prosecuted for homocide. The hard part is that such parents, if convicted, would then be subject to Oregon's mandatory sentencing laws. They'd be facing real jail time--long sentences. The question will be whether prosecutors, juries, and judges will have the stomach for that. As much as I'd like to think it possible, a far better solution would be to educate the parents, or even to get them to accept the idea that doctors are actually tools through which God works his will. Unfortunately, so powerful is the pull of religions like Followers of Christ that it's highly unlikely that that will happen. Worse, I don't know that even the threat of long prison terms will deter religious zealots, but right now I don't have any better ideas.

Here's hoping that Tomei succeeds in getting this law passed and that it becomes a model for the rest of the country.

This article was found at:

http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2011/02/oregon_on_the_verge_of_stripping_legal_p.php

******************************************************************************

The Oregonian  -  February 20, 2011

Oregon lawmakers appear ready to end legal protections for faith-healing parents

By Steve Mayes, The Oregonian


Oregon lawmakers will take the first step today toward ending legal protections for parents who rely solely on faith to treat their dying children.

The bill targets the Followers of Christ, an Oregon City church with a long history of children dying from treatable medical conditions. A previous crackdown restricted but did not eliminate religious immunity from state criminal statutes.

Rep. Carolyn Tomei, D-Milwaukie, said deaths of three Followers children in recent years – all without medical intervention – prompted her to introduce the bill. "Such gross and unnecessary neglect cannot be allowed, even if the parents are well-meaning," Tomei said.

The legislation appears primed for approval. It has wide support both political parties, prosecutors, medical providers and child-protection groups, and there is no organized opposition.

"I don't think there'll be anyone coming to testify against it," Tomei said.

House Bill 2721 would remove spiritual treatment as a defense for all homicide charges. Moreover, if found guilty, parents would be subject to mandatory sentencing under Oregon's Measure 11.

Legislators and prosecutors hope the threat of long prison sentences will cause church members to reconsider their tradition of rejecting medical treatment in favor of faith healing.

"This will level the playing field so all parents will be operating under the same rules," said Clackamas County District Attorney John Foote. "It's going to make it easier to hold parents accountable who don't protect their children."

Previous reforms 

In the late 1990s, a series of news stories in The Oregonian documented dozens of cases of Followers of Christ children dying from curable medical conditions.

Oregon legislators responded in 1999 with a proposal to eliminate the use of religious belief as a criminal defense. But the bill faced opposition from Christian Scientists and mixed support from lawmakers.

"That was the most we could do at the time," said Kevin Mannix, a Salem attorney who then chaired the House Judiciary subcommittee on criminal law. Mannix is now president of the Oregon Anti-Crime Alliance, which supports HB 2721.

Another wave of Followers of Christ faith-healing deaths started in 2008 and received wide media attention, including television coverage on TruTV, a cable channel formerly known as Court TV.

The publicity of trials "had a dramatic impact" on the need to strengthen the law, Mannix said.

The Christian Science Church also changed its position. The continuing deaths "reached a critical mass," said John Clague, Christian Science media and legislative liaison.

"This is not about Christian Science," Clague said. "This is all coming from another denomination. We should never risk the life of a child through the practice of spiritual care."

Will a new law work?

Practically speaking, it's hard to say how the Followers will react to losing legal protections. Church leaders do not speak to the media and rarely issue statements, and the church did not respond to a request for comment on this story.

Foote has taken a dual approach in dealing with the Followers. He aggressively prosecuted parents who failed to seek medical care for their children. And he reached out, sending a letter last year inviting church members to join him in seeking a middle ground, protecting children while respecting religious practices.

The Followers appear to be divided on the issue of medical care, according to multiple sources familiar with the congregation. Some take their children to doctors but do so privately to avoid criticism or shunning. Some want to use doctors but fear ostracism. And some are hard-core believers who would never seek medical care.

The two most recent cases to go to trial, involving the deaths of 15-month-old Ava Worthington and her teenage uncle, Neil Beagley, clearly showed that some church members will defy the law, even if it means a prison sentence.

Ava's parents testified that they believed their faith-healing rituals – prayer, anointing with oil, fasting and laying on of hands – were working right to the minute the girl died of bronchial pneumonia and a blood infection.

Beagley's parents testified that they never considered taking their dying son to a hospital or calling 9-1-1, even when he stopped breathing.

Ava's parents, Raylene and Carl Brent Worthington, were found not guilty of second-degree manslaughter. Beagley's parents, Jeffrey and Marci Beagley, were convicted of criminally negligent homicide last year and sentenced to 16 months in prison.

A third Followers of Christ couple, Timothy and Rebecca Wyland, were recently charged with first-degree criminal mistreatment for failing to seek treatment for a growth that covered their infant daughter's left eye and left her on the verge of blindness. They are scheduled for trial in May.

Since the Worthingtons, Beagleys, Wylands and other church members won't talk to the media, it's impossible to gauge how they and other parents have been affected by the trials.

All three couples have said that taking their children to doctors would be a sign of spiritual weakness.

Mannix, a devout Catholic, strongly defended a family's right to use prayer and faith healing but emphasized the need to protect children.

"It's not like the state is going out and trying to undermine religion," Mannix said. "(Parents) can adhere to their values as adults, but as a society we will protect their children so they can achieve adulthood and make decisions for themselves," Mannix said.

"God also gave us doctors and the capability to heal physically, and we should use those gifts."

TIMELINE

1995: Lobbied by the Christian Science Church, legislators introduce a religious defense to Oregon's homicide statutes, protecting parents who try to heal their children solely with prayer and faith-healing rituals. Parents who could prove to a judge or jury that faith governed their actions become immune from criminal liability, just as others can assert a claim of self-defense or extreme emotional disturbance.

1997: Again at the behest of Christian Scientists, Oregon legislators add religious shields to the state's first- and second-degree manslaughter statutes.

1998: Citing legal immunities for faith-healers, Clackamas County District Attorney Terry Gustafson declines to prosecute Followers of Christ church members whose 11-year-old son, Bo Phillips, died from untreated diabetes. As he suffered for days, his parents withheld medical treatment in favor of prayer. The boy's death sparks a statewide controversy and calls for changes in Oregon law.

1999: After months of debate, legislators reform Oregon's faith-healing laws, eliminating religious protections in cases of first- and second-degree criminal mistreatment and second-degree manslaughter. In a compromise with advocates of religious freedom and parental rights, legislators also approve a faith-healing exemption to mandatory minimum sentences.

2009: Raylene and Carl Brent Worthington of Oregon City become the first parents prosecuted under the 1999 reforms after their 15-month-old daughter dies from untreated bronchial pneumonia and a blood infection. A Clackamas County jury acquits the mother and convicts the father on a single count of criminal mistreatment. Since then, charges have been brought against several more Followers, including Raylene Worthington's parents, Jeffrey and Marci Beagley, who were found guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the death of their teenage son.

2011: Lawmakers consider eliminating the last remnants of Oregon's religious-defense statutes.

Faith healing and Oregon law  -  WHAT'S NEW

Current law: Oregon is the only state that provides immunity from prosecution for murder by neglect and first-degree manslaughter to those who provide care or treatment to minors "solely by spiritual means pursuant to (their) religious beliefs." Some cases are also exempt from mandatory minimum sentences.

House Bill 2721: Repeals spiritual treatment defense in cases of homicide and criminal mistreatment of children. Those convicted of second-degree manslaughter would be subject to a minimum sentence of six years and three months.

Today's hearing:The House Judiciary Committee will meet at 1 p.m. in Room 343 of the Capitol in Salem.

This article was found at:

http://www.oregonlive.com/oregon-city/index.ssf/2011/02/oregon_lawmakers_appear_ready_to_end_faith-healing_protections_for_parents_of_dying_children.html

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