Brisbane, Australia
Cnn
–
Fourteen members of a small religious sect in Australia were found guilty of manslaughter guilty of an 8 -year -old girl, who died after retaining insulin had to treat her diabetes because of their unshakable belief that God would heal.
Instead of looking for medical help while she was dying, they turned to prayer and song, maintaining a vigil around her bed, and even after she had stopped breathing, has sought a divine intervention to raise it from the dead.
Elizabeth Struhs’ parents were one of the members of the home church recognized Wednesday after a nine -week trial only at the Supreme Brisbane Court which heard evidence of 60 witnesses and examined hundreds of exhibitions.
Put it back Verdicts, judge Martin Burns said that Elizabeth’s death was “inevitable” after the group failed to administer insulin or asking for a doctor while she was dying for six days in January 2022 to his Home of Towoomba, west of Brisbane.
The 14 members had refused to plead a plea, which was officially accepted as not guilty, and the courtroom was adapted to welcome all the accused so that the case could be heard during a single trial held last year.
In his decision on Wednesday, Burns said that, until his death, Elizabeth was a “dynamic and happy child” who was “treated with love … and adored” by all the members of the church, including the accused.
“However, due to a singular belief in the healing power of God who, in the minds of his parents and other members of the Church has left room to use any form of medical care or Treatment, she was deprived of the only thing that would certainly have kept her alive – insulin, “wrote Burns.
Elizabeth received a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes in 2019, but died on January 7, 2022 of diabetic ketoacidosis, a complication caused by a lack of insulin and medical treatment for the disease, according to the decision.
The spiritual leader of the group Brendan Stevens and the father of the girl Jason Struhs were initially accused of murder by reckless indifference, but the two were found guilty of the slightest accusation of manslaughter guilty because Burns was not Convinced out of reasonable doubt that they “knew that Elizabeth would probably die. “”
When he is invited to make an opening declaration at the start of the trial, Stevens maintained himself for the group, telling the court that he considered “a religious persecution”.
During the trial, the court learned that the sect was almost completely confined to three families who, at the time of the death of Elizabeth, met three days a week.
They have not attributed any religious name but considered themselves Christians who followed the Bible. They believed that by prayer, a person could receive the Holy Spirit, which would allow them to speak in tongues.
A central principle of their faith was the healing power of God, and they rejected conventional medicine, which some members have described as “witchcraft,” said the decision.
The court learned that Jason Struhs had joined the church in August 2021, according to his wife Kerrie Struhs, who would become firmly believing in his teachings.
A few months later, on January 2, Jason Struhs told a church meeting that “God had healed Elizabeth of his diabetes”, according to the written decision of Burns.
That night, Elizabeth had a last dose of slow action insulin, and the next morning, her levels of glucose were so normal that Jason Struhs became convinced that God had intervened.
Struhs told her daughter to put her gluometer to put away because “she no longer needed it”, and the members of the group praised the “miraculous development,” said the decision.
Gluomers measure the amount of glucose in the blood and indicate whether a dose of insulin is necessary. Elizabeth Struhs used his last time on January 3.
Over the next four days, the members of the church have turned Elizabeth’s state, sitting near her bedside when she deteriorated regularly.
They have shared SMS updates, some describing it as “agitated”. She vomited and “quite weak”. However, Stevens has repeatedly reassured Elizabeth’s parents whom “God will prevail”, according to the decision.
Judge Burns wrote that any conviction that God had intervened “should have been dissipated” when the members of the Church saw Elizabeth refuse “a serious illness”. Instead, the group called for prayers, sang and spoke about the goodness of God.
Even after the 8 -year -old ceased to breathe early on January 7, the group gathered around it, singing “choirs” and praying for it to “be raised from the dead by God”.
A text message between the defendants said: “Elizabeth does not seem to breathe apparently, but we will see a victory very soon. God can do everything!
Jason Struhs finally called the emergency services 36 hours after the death of his daughter, telling others that “although God still raises Elizabeth, they could not leave a corpse in the house,” said the decision.
When the police arrived at home, they set up a crime scene, inaugurating the supporters of the church outside. A detective told court that when she arrived, she saw around 20 people in the courtyard before playing music, singing and praying.
Elizabeth’s older sister Jayde Struhs told the court outside the court outside the court, told journalists that she was “relieved” to know that those responsible for her death had been found guilty.
“It was three years long and hard. Not a moment happened that I did not think of my little sister, Elizabeth, “said Struhs.
The 14 people recognized guilty will be sentenced on February 11.
This story has been updated with additional information.