Faith-healing couple found guilty of criminally negligent homicide--

OREGON CITY -- A Clackamas County jury sent a clear signal Tuesday that parents who rely solely on faith healing to treat their children face prison if a child dies.

Jeffrey and Marci Beagley were found guilty Tuesday of criminally negligent homicide in the death of their 16-year-old son, Neil. The boy died in June 2008 of complications from an undiagnosed congenital urinary blockage after his parents attempted to heal him with prayer, anointing with oil and laying on of hands.

There are a couple of things I find really peculiar about the mindset of these people. The story points out one of them, here:

The Beagleys are considering their options and may file a appeal, said attorney Wayne Mackeson, who represented Jeffrey Beagley.

"If conviction and a prison sentence meant they would get their son back, they would do that in a heartbeat," he told reporters gathered on the courthouse steps.

Of course, a prison sentence wouldn't get their son back, but timely medical attention could have prevented his loss. They are considering an appeal of their conviction in front of another court, but their beliefs wouldn't let them take the boy to a doctor--they didn't dare appeal to God. They expect that society should understand why they let their child die, but they didn't think their God would understand that they wanted their son to live?

Once again, I wonder at the sort of God people feel obliged to worship. It seems like a very cruel God that wouldn't understand the sorrow and fear of loving parents, nor would forgive the "weakness" of seeking medical care for the boy.

The other thing is here:

Three doctors testified for the defense, generally saying that Neil Beagley's symptoms wouldn't necessarily have appeared life-threatening.

In his closing argument, prosecutor Greg Horner noted that the Beagleys would not take their son to a physician but relied on medical experts to defend their actions.

It is "a rich irony," Horner said.

Doctors--not good enough to save their son from death, but perfectly all right for saving the parents from prison? It's a bit telling, isn't it?

Also, I'm a little fascinated by a piece of information in the side-bar at the link, which describes a sentencing exemption of probation rather than prison for parents who offer a religious defense for the homicide of their children. I'm sure there must be some limitations where a religious defense wouldn't save someone from incarceration--it would be cracked to have a full-fledged "pass" for anyone brazen enough to say, "Well, God said...", but I find it interesting that there is such a thing.