An 18-month-old boy died because his mother fed him a vegan diet
There are times in life when we are "served lemons" and we just have to try our best to "make lemonade". The death of someone, a person dear to us, is the probably the worst thing that can happen to us. Even if one can't bring back someone from the dead, the circumstances that led to the loss stills have a strong impact on us. Especially if one is somehow complicit in the unfortunate event.
In today's story, a mother had to deal with this reality: she was the cause of a death herself.
via Nypost
Sheila O'Leary, 40, is a mother of 3 children. The youngest of these, Ezra, was only 18 months old and sadly he is no longer with us. According to the jury in Cape Coral, Florida, the cause of the infant's untimely death was due to a lack of nutrition: malnutrition lead to his death.
The boy weighed just 8 kilos when he died: he was fed a vegan diet, with only mother's milk, raw fruit and vegetables. The other 2 children were on the same diet, but Ezra didn't make it.
Once the facts were determined, the judge had no doubts about how to proceed and passed his harsh sentence on Sheila.
Guilty. Sheila was sentenced to 65 years in prison; her husband, Ryan Patrick, is also in serious trouble with the law, of course: the couple faces 6 charges and now Ryan is to be tried, risking ending up with the same sentence as his wife.
Little Ezra, according to medical reports, died as a result of complications that arose due to the insufficiency of his diet: some fundamental nutrients, such as proteins, were completely missing.
One would think that this terrible event could have somehow been averted: but a shocking truth was revealed in trial.
NBC2 News/Youtube
In fact, it appeared that little Ezra hadn't eaten for days: "This child wasn't eating. He died of starvation when he was only 18 months old", revealed Francine Donnorummo, head of the special victims unit.
The court also ruled that Sheila will never again have any type of contact with her surviving children: they were also found to be undernourished and far from healthy.
A diet, "a food philosophy", is and must be respected even by those who do not share the same views. However, humans - especially young ones - need a well-balanced diet in order to grow up healthy. What do you think of this story?
