Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

World

Alberta couple guilty after son died from meningitis

The eight-woman, four-man jury deliberated for nine hours over two days before reaching verdicts of guilty. David Stephan, 32, and his wife, Collet Stephan, 35, were found guilty of failing to provide the necessaries of life for their son Ezekiel in 2012.

When their son became sick, the Stephans thought he had croup or the flu. For over two weeks they treated him with remedies that included horseradish, hot peppers, garlic and onions. They did not seek medical treatment even though a friend of the couple, a registered nurse, told them she thought he might have meningitis.

On one occasion shortly before his death, Collet Stephan took Ezekiel to a naturopathic clinic in Lethbridge to pick up a mixture. The boy was so stiff he could not sit in his car seat and had to lie on a mattress.

After the visit to the naturopath, Ezekiel stopped breathing. His parents took him to a hospital in Cardston and then he went to a hospital in Lethbridge. The toddler was later flown to the Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary and while there he was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis. On March 18, 2012, Ezekiel was declared brain dead and removed from life support.

CTV reports David Stephan’s father, Anthony Stephan, founded Truehope Nutritional Support after his wife committed suicide in 1996. Many in the family were bi-polar and the company attempted to find natural treatments for the condition. David Stephan is a vice-president of Truehope.

The public is divided over the guilty verdict. Opinions on social media varied from calling the verdict an injustice to calls for the death penalty. There were gasps and tears in the courtroom when the verdict was announced. David Stephan’s brother-in-law called the verdict “an injustice” and said a child must now be taken to a doctor if they cough or else the Crown will be after the parents.

The prosecutor, Lisa Weich, said there was no doubt the Stephans loved their son but “sometimes love just isn’t enough.” She added parents must follow the legal standard of care regarding children.

The National Post reports after the verdict was announced, the College of Naturopathic Doctors of Alberta intends to conduct an investigation into the actions of Tracey Tannis, the naturopath Collet Stephan took her son to see. Several doctors in the province lodged complaints after Ezekiel’s death.

The maximum penalty for failing to provide the necessaries of life is five years in prison. But as Shannon Prithipaul, a past president of the Alberta Criminal Trial Lawyers noted, the couple will probably not get close to the maximum sentence. It is not the situation where the couple starved their son or withheld medication from him.

David and Collet Stephan continue to be free on bail and are due back in court on June 13 to set a date for sentencing.

Written By

You may also like:

World

Calling for urgent action is the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

Business

The cathedral is on track to reopen on December 8 - Copyright AFP Ludovic MARINParis’s Notre-Dame Cathedral, ravaged by fire in 2019, is on...

Business

Saudi Aramco President & CEO Amin Nasser speaks during the CERAWeek oil summit in Houston, Texas - Copyright AFP Mark FelixPointing to the still...

Business

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal infers that some workers might be falling out of the job market altogether.