Carl and Raylene Worthington were charged with second-degree manslaughter and criminal mistreatment in the death of their 15-month-old daughter.
Posted on 07/23/2009 2:35:06 PM PDT by jazusamo
A jury today found Carl Worthington guilty of criminal mistreatment in the death of his 15-month-old daughter, the first conviction under a 1999 state law passed to protect the children of parents who believe in treating illness solely with faith healing.
Carl and Raylene Worthington were acquitted of all other charges.
Carl Worthington, 29, and Raylene Worthington, 26, had both been charged with second-degree manslughter and criminal mistreatment.
The criminal mistreatment charge carries a sentence of up to one year in jail.
After hearing 12 days of testimony from 21 witnesses, it took the jury more than a week to reach a decision.
The Worthingtons' daughter Ava died last year of bronchial pneumonia and a blood infection. Prosecutors said they could have saved their daughter's life if they had sought medical attention. Instead, they and members of their Oregon City church, the Followers of Christ, attempted to heal her with prayer, fasting, anointing of oil and laying on of hands.
Jurors announced the verdict Thursday afternoon in a Clackamas County Circuit Courtroom crowded with members of the Worthingtons' congregation, the Followers of Christ Church.
Of the dozens of children buried in the Followers of Christ cemetery since the 1950s, at least 21 died from medically treatable conditions, according to a 1998 investigation by The Oregonian.
But the Worthingtons were the first members of their church to be prosecuted for failing to provide adequate medical care to their children.
Ava Pauline Worthington died at her parents home on March 2, 2008, surrounded by up to 200 family and friends who conducted faith-healing sessions in the days and hours preceding her death.
During the trial, attorneys presented two vastly different versions of Ava Worthington: a happy, chubby girl who was energetic in the hours before her death, and a child with stunted growth whose parents ignored a softball-sized cyst on her neck that contributed to her health problems.
Prosecutors Greg Horner wrapped up the case by relying on several medical expert witnesses who testified that Ava was a child whose health problems were ignored throughout her short life.
A softball-size cystic hygroma on the child's neck contributed to breathing and swallowing problems and may have led to an infection, according to the deputy medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Ava.
Mark Cogan, defense attorney for Carl Worthington, dismissed the cyst as the "tiniest bulge" that failed to hurt the child. The Worthingtons and other defense witnesses testified that Ava appeared to be improving in the last hours of her life and that her death came as a sudden, unforeseeable surprise.
Carl and Raylene Worthington were charged with second-degree manslaughter and criminal mistreatment in the death of their 15-month-old daughter.
OR Ping!
Tough issue, but I tend to come down on the side believing this is abuse. If they chose not to feed their kids, for religious reasons (e.g., mandatory 40-day fast) or not, it would clearly be abuse. I’m not sure medical care is much different.
I agree. As is pointed out in the article there are a bunch of children dead over the years because of their faith healing belief. The faith healing exemption for medical treatment law in Oregon was changed in 1999 because of this church.
A very good point, if it becomes law it’ll legalize it for many, especially seniors.
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