a**p 发帖数: 239 | 2 前年美国的一个案子. 父母因为信仰的缘故不送孩子去看医生, 认为祷告就有可以治好. 作孽啊.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/29556929.html
Parents charged in diabetes death
They didn't get medical help for sick daughter, 11
By Bill Glauber and Bill Glauber of the Journal Sentinel
April 29, 2008
Mark Hoffman
Dale and Leilani Neumann enter the courtroom for their initial
appearance
Wednesday in Marathon County Circuit Court in Wausau.
AP
Madeline Neumann died from an undiagnosed and treatable form of
diabetes.
Related Coverage
DOCUMENTS: Criminal complaint, police reports
Multimedia
AUDIO: 911 call made by Neumann's aunt and the 911 call made from the
Neumann residence
PDF: Search warrant results
TMJ4 VIDEO: 6 p.m. March 28 newscast
More Coverage
4/29/08: Parents charged in diabetes death
3/31/08: Editorial: Faith and medicine
3/29/08: Charges possible in diabetes death
3/29/08: Nichols: Faith, medicine don't have to be incompatible
3/28/08: Parents prayed with ministry founder
3/27/08: Faith, medicine collide, and a young girl dies
Even as her 11-year-old daughter lay dying on a mattress on the floor of
the
family dining room on Easter Sunday, Leilani Neumann never wavered in
her
belief in the power of prayer.
"We just thought it was a spiritual attack and we prayed for her,"
Neumann
said, according to a police report. "My husband, Dale, was crying and
mentioned taking Kara to the doctor, and I said the Lord's going to heal
her
and we continued to pray."
Prayer didn't save Madeline Kara Neumann, who died of untreated diabetes
March 23.
And now, the law is poised to come down hard on the girl's parents,
Leilani
and Dale Neumann, who were both charged with second-degree reckless
homicide
Monday by Marathon County District Attorney Jill Falstad.
If convicted, the parents face maximum sentences of 25 years in prison
and a
$100,000 fine.
The parents are scheduled to make their first court appearance Wednesday
in
Marathon County Circuit Court.
The Neumanns, of Weston, could not be reached for comment. Their
attorney,
Gene Linehan, also declined comment, according to a receptionist at his
Wausau office.
Prosecutors said they looked at the "progression of the illness" as they
weighed charges in the case.
"By that Saturday (the day before the girl's death) you had an 11-year-
old
child who wasn't eating, so she wasn't getting any nourishment, she
wasn't
taking in any fluids, she wasn't walking, she was struggling to get to
the
bathroom," Falstad said. "She really was very vulnerable and helpless.
And
it seemed apparent that everybody knew that. As her illness progressed
to
the next morning being comatose . . . it just is very, very surprising,
shocking that she wasn't allowed medical prevention (attention).
"She had a disease that was treatable and her death could have been
prevented," Falstad said.
The Neumanns, who own a coffee shop in Weston, have three other children
who
are living with relatives in the area under an agreement with
authorities.
'People of faith'
The Neumanns have said they don't believe in any organized religion or
faith
but believe that healing comes through prayer.
During an interview with Everest Metro Police, Dale Neumann said he and
his
family are "people of faith." According to one family member interviewed
by
police, the Neumanns are Pentecostal and were starting a small ministry
at
their coffee shop.
According to the police report, made available with the charging
documents,
Dale Neumann said "throughout the interview that he and his family do
not
need any traditional medical intervention nor do they 'believe' in it."
The document also states: "Neumann said his family never gets sick and
if
they would, prayer and God would heal them."
The Neumanns both said they noticed a change in Kara's health around two
weeks before her death.
"(Dale) Neumann said that he really didn't think she was ill but rather
said
that he thought her symptoms were due to Madeline's reaching puberty,"
the
document said. The family called their daughter Kara, although
authorities
also refer to her as Madeline in documents.
Dale Neumann said on the Friday before his daughter died he noticed she
was
"a little more tired," but that she ate a McDonald's meal without any
problems. By Saturday he noted the girl "seemed to act like she had a
fever"
while her breathing seemed a little labored.
Meanwhile, Leilani Neumann told police that by Saturday, "Kara was
laying on
the couch. Her legs looked skinny and blue. I didn't realize how skinny
she
was. We took her to my bed where I got her warm. I thought it was a
spiritual attack. We stayed by her side nonstop and we prayed.
"I asked Kara if she loved Jesus and she shook her head yes."
Later Saturday, "Kara got up to go to the bathroom and fell off the
toilet,"
Leilani Neumann told police.
Dale Neumann told police he thought his daughter was getting better on
Sunday but that at one point he tried to sit her up but she was unable
to
remain up.
The investigator said he used the term "unconscious" to describe the
girl's
condition, according to the report, while Dale Neumann "preferred to say
that she was 'in sleep mode.' "
Dale Neumann said Kara couldn't communicate and wasn't taking any water.
By noon, the family contacted another couple, Randall and Althea
Wormgoor.
The Wormgoors had followed the Neumanns from California to Wisconsin, a
relationship apparently stoked by religious as well as potential
business
ties. There was talk of opening a second coffee shop in the area that
the
Wormgoors would operate, the police report says.
The Wormgoors arrived at the home 30 minutes before Kara stopped
breathing,
Dale Neumann said.
Randall Wormgoor encouraged Dale Neumann to call for medical help but
the
father "said he remained confident and steadfast in his belief that
prayer
would heal Madeline," according to an interview Dale Neumann gave to
police.
Dale Neumann said he heard a "commotion" coming from the room where his
daughter was lying down and that he began CPR efforts. One of the
Wormgoors
called 911.
Dale Neumann told investigators that "given the same set of
circumstances
with another child, he would not waiver in his faith and confidence in
the
healing power of prayer," according to the interview statement.
Police also said an e-mail Dale Neumann sent at 4:58 p.m. on March 22,
the
day before Kara's death, showed that the parents were aware their
daughter
was very ill.
The subject line of the email was: "Help our daughter needs emergency
prayer
!!!!" The e-mail was send to AmericasLastDays, an online ministry run by
David Eells.
Case could set precedent
Falstad, the district attorney, said the case is likely to be precedent-
setting in Wisconsin.
"There has been a great deal of discussion regarding the availability of
a '
religious defense' in this case," Falstad said in a prepared statement
to
announce the charges. "In our nation, we have a constitutional guarantee
of
freedom of religion. We also give parents leeway in matters of child
rearing
. However, neither is absolute. In this case, it was necessary to weigh
freedom of religion and parenting rights against the state's interests
in
protecting children."
Wisconsin state law appears to allow an exemption from child abuse
charges
for parents who engage in treatment by spiritual means through prayer.
But
the exemption applies only if the use of prayer alone is the basis for
charges.
Prosecutors say that exemption does not extend to homicide cases.
Shawn F. Peters, a University of Wisconsin-Madison teacher and author of
"
When Prayer Fails: Faith Healing, Children and the Law," said the
exemption
for prayer could still impact the case.
"I think the prosecutor did the best she could with the law she has," he
said. |