Parents pick prayer over docs; girl dies

[Zebulon]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080328/ap_on_re_us/daughter_s_death_prayer;_ylt=As3uCtzWmw1ilICH2h0DT has0NUE

By ROBERT IMRIE, Associated Press Writer
Fri Mar 28, 6:16 AM ET

Police are investigating an 11-year-old girl's death from an undiagnosed, treatable form of diabetes after her parents chose to pray for her rather than take her to a doctor.

An autopsy showed Madeline Neumann died Sunday of diabetic ketoacidosis, a condition that left too little insulin in her body, Everest Metro Police Chief Dan Vergin said.

She had probably been ill for about a month, suffering symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, excessive thirst, loss of appetite and weakness, the chief said Wednesday, noting that he expects to complete the investigation by Friday and forward the results to the district attorney.

The girl's mother, Leilani Neumann, said that she and her family believe in the Bible and that healing comes from God, but that they do not belong to an organized religion or faith, are not fanatics and have nothing against doctors.

...

[Zebulon]

If I put this in the wrong forum, please relocate.

As to the parents in the article, their other kids should be removed from their custody, and they should be prosecuted. :mad:

[Goldie]

I saw this a couple of days ago on Nancy Grace and other news.

I cannot believe those IDIOTS still have their other children.

If they had done the same thing, and not brought religion into it, they'd be in jail right now, and their other kids safe.

If praying worked... I'd have been pain -free and rich a long time ago!

[Monad]

This made me so angry to read - how dare they place their own ridiculous beliefs over the needs of their child.

[Lucretius III]

This story even made the papers here in the UK

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/03/28/wprayer128.xml

All I can add is that these are STUPID ,STUPID, STUPID people

[Matty]

If I put this in the wrong forum, please relocate.

As to the parents in the article, their other kids should be removed from their custody, and they should be prosecuted. :mad:

Yup. a charge of death by negligence at the very least though i would be tempted to say they wilfully caused the kids death by their sheer fucking stupidity/credulity and would be more inclined to see a charge of second degree murder or manslaughter as most apt.


They should certainly have any other kids taken away, for good.

I hate the fact that most people seem never to blame the actual religion in these cases, they blame the parents for taking it too literally (or for having insufficient faith of course), or for being dumb etc but they never blame the insidious piece of shit book, or preacher that told them to do it in the first place. If they are members of a particularly kooky actual church rather than just following their own in interpretation, I'd like to see the preacher prosecuted for incitement to murder too.

"We are remaining strong for our children," Leilani Neumann said. "Only our faith in God is giving us strength at this time."[quote] Someone give this cunt a lobotomy, before she kills her other kids

I only hope that the other kids some day turn around and call them on kil;ling theoir sibling. I imgine they are pretty brainwashed of course but you never know.

Leilani Neumann said she and her husband are not worried about the investigation because "our lives are in God's hands. We know we did not do anything criminal. We know we did the best for our daughter we knew how to do." Take the kids away, give them both a fucking good kicking and nail them up to a cross, maybe then they will be happy.

'GAAAAHHHHHH.

[tjakey]

The girl's mother, Leilani Neumann, said that she and her family believe in the Bible and that healing comes from God, but that they do not belong to an organized religion or faith, are not fanatics and have nothing against doctors.

...

Yet somehow their daughter is dead for lack of a simple insulin shot...fucking idiots.

[RexT]

Madness in our midsts and no one stands up to it except atheists. Could you imagine a more twisted sense of irony? The so called moral, just, and righteous people are the ones bringing the most evil into the world. And they think we are the ones going to hell.

[Gooch's dad]

The really unfortunate thing is that this took place here in Wisconsin, which has a specific statute on the books, protecting parents from prosecution in exactly these kind of cases.

local article on the law (http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=22053)

State statute 948.03(6) provides an exemption from the law against failing to act to protect children from bodily harm for what is referred to as "Treatment through prayer." The statute says: "A person is not guilty of an offense under this section solely because he or she provides a child with treatment by spiritual means through prayer alone for healing in accordance with the religious method of healing ... in lieu of medical or surgical treatment."

The international outrage might actually be enough to get our worthless state legislature to remove this statute from the books, finally.

[Lucretius III]

I just wonder what the reaction of the authoritites would have been if instead of being members of a "small Bible group" the parents had said they were into voodoo or witchcraft.

[Garnet]

Parents would be in jail, kids would be in foster care.

[Ray Moscow]

Parents would be in jail, kids would be in foster care.

I suppose even pagans should keep a Bible "get out of jail free" card handy.

"Yes, we were chanting and burning candles to the Great Mo ... I mean, Jesus, when the kid up and died anyway."

[Garnet]

That's so cynical Ray!







And so true. :(

[Jet Black]

I think it's pretty tragic that the parents have been indoctrinated to such a level, and this has caused a pointless death. People go on about atheism being evil, but since when did a parent's strong atheist convictions result in this kind of needless death?

I do find it even worse though that the state specifically protects this kind of madness.

[Jobar]

Obviously, the Wisconsin legislature thinks of things like this as a case of evolution in action.

Bastards. :mad:

[Matty]

well it is really i guess. Weeding out the familial genes of the overly credulous/stupid in the same way those muppet snakehandler Xtians do.

Poor kid, all because her parents are so patently fucking dumb.

They should be forbidden from ever taking any medicine or medical advice again ever, even if they change their minds when they get cancer or some other nasty (as the cynic in me assumes many of them do, its a lot easier to gamble your faith on someone else life than your own, right?)