Prayerful Wisconsin Parents to be Charged in Death of Diabetic Daughter
The parents of an 11-year-old Wisconsin girl who went into a diabetic coma and died as her parents prayed for her for days rather than seeking medical attention will be charged with second-degree reckless homicide, officials said at a news conference today.
If convicted, Dale and Leilani Neumann face up to 25 years in prison, reports the Wassau Daily Herald. Their daughter, Madeline Kara, had not been to a doctor since age 3, and the parents reportedly said they didn’t know she was diabetic when she died last month.
“Second-degree reckless homicide has two elements. The first element is that the defendant caused the death of another. The second element is that the defendant caused the death by criminally reckless conduct,” said Marathon County District Attorney Jill Falstad, reading from a prepared statement at a press conference.
Although parents have considerable religious and constitutional freedom to raise their children as they think best, this freedom is not absolute, she says.
Additional coverage:
ABC News: “Homicide Charges for Parents Who Prayed as Daughter Died”
