Fourteen religious sect members were found guilty of the manslaughter of a diabetic girl after denying her insulin, relying on God to save her.
Elizabeth Rose Struhs died at her family’s house in the southern Australian city of Toowoomba after being denied her insulin shots for type-1 diabetes for six days.
Her parents, Jason Richard Struhs and Kerrie Elizabeth Struhs, were part of a group of a few dozen members called ‘The Saints,’ not affiliated with an established church in the country.
They are known to oppose medical intervention, blasting is as ‘witchcraft’, and believe in the healing power of God.
As the eight-year-old lay dying, they turned to prayer and song, maintaining a vigil around her bed.
Even after Elizabeth stopped breathing, they sought divine intervention for her ‘to be raised from the dead by God.’
One text message between defendants said: ‘Elizabeth does not appear to be breathing apparently, but we will see a victory very soon. God can do anything.’
Her bereaved parents and her brother Zachary were among 14 members of The Saints who were found guilty of manslaughter over Elizabeth’s death in January 2022.
Jason Richard Struhs, 53, and the sect leader, Brendan Luke Stevens, 63, had been charged with the more serious crime of murder, but Queensland Supreme Court Justice Martin Burns found both guilty of manslaughter.
Justice Martin Burns said that although it was clear Elizabeth’s parents and ‘every member of the church including all other accused’ had adored the little girl, their actions had resulted in her death.
He stressed that the prosecution failed to prove they had shown reckless indifference to life, adding: ‘It cannot be doubted that Elizabeth was lovingly cared for in almost every way.
‘However, due to a singular belief in the healing power of God… she was deprived of the one thing that would most definitely have kept her alive.’
Burns later added: ‘There remained a reasonable possibility that, in the cloistered atmosphere of the church which enveloped Struhs — that he (the father) never came to the full realization Elizabeth would probably die.’
Elizabeth was diagnosed with Type-1 diabetes three years earlier, in 2019.
The court had previously heard that the victim was hospitalised that same year.
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The senior endocrinologist, Louise Conwell, told the court Elizabeth was ‘near death’ at the time and that she was ‘the most seriously unwell child’ she had seen in 20 years practising, ABC reported.
The child was only 13 kilograms, required multiple IV catheters and a ventilator, she said.
All 14 members had refused to enter a plea, which was formally accepted as not guilty.
They were remanded in custody and will appear in court for sentencing on February 11. Each faces a potential maximum sentence of life in prison.
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