Girl’s death could test faith-healing law

c. 2008 Religion News Service PORTLAND, Ore. _ The case of a 15-month-old girl who died for lack of medical treatment could become the first test of a state law that disallows faith healing at the expense of a child’s life. Ava Worthington died March 2 at home in Oregon City from bacterial bronchial pneumonia […]

c. 2008 Religion News Service

PORTLAND, Ore. _ The case of a 15-month-old girl who died for lack of medical treatment could become the first test of a state law that disallows faith healing at the expense of a child’s life.

Ava Worthington died March 2 at home in Oregon City from bacterial bronchial pneumonia and infection, according to Dr. Christopher Young, a deputy state medical examiner. Both conditions could have been prevented or treated with antibiotics, he said.


The child’s breathing was further compromised by a benign cyst that had never been medically addressed and could have been removed from her neck, Young said.

Child-abuse detectives recently referred investigative findings to prosecutors, who are evaluating the case in light of a 1999 law that was passed after several faith-healing deaths of children.

“This is the first time that they could be taking a shot at interpreting the law,” said state Senate President Peter Courtney, who carried the contentious bill on the Senate floor nearly a decade ago. He said the Worthington case is giving him “flashbacks.”

“Kids were dying. Kids were suffering,” he said. “Kids who have no choice over these things.”

If prosecuted, Ava’s parents would be the first members of the Followers of Christ, a fundamentalist Christian denomination, to face criminal charges for failing to seek medical treatment for a gravely ill child.

Of dozens of children buried since the 1950s in the Followers of Christ Church cemetery, at least 21 could have been saved by medical intervention, according to a 1998 analysis by The Oregonian newspaper. None of the deaths from that era resulted in prosecution.

The Followers of Christ Church came to Oregon early in the 20th century. According to church tradition, when members become ill, fellow worshippers pray and anoint them with oil. Former members say those who seek modern medical remedies are ostracized by the group.


Deaths associated with the church prompted a firestorm among lawmakers over religious freedom, parental rights and the state’s responsibility to protect children. Since the law passed in 1999, Courtney said, he hasn’t heard of any cases involving children who died because their parents chose prayer over medical care. “I really thought we’d resolved it,” he said.

The 1999 law eliminated the state’s “spiritual-healing defense” in cases of second-degree manslaughter, first- and second-degree criminal mistreatment and nonpayment of child support.

Greg Horner, Clackamas County chief deputy district attorney, said it’s too early to know what, if any, charges the parents could face. “We are reviewing the case, and our investigation is progressing,” Horner said.

Officials declined to identify the parents, disclose whether other children are in the home or discuss details of the investigation.

According to property and other public records, Carl Brent Worthington, 28, and Raylene Marie Worthington, 25, own the single-story home where Ava died. Attempts to reach the Worthingtons at their home were unsuccessful.

At the church-owned Carus Cemetery, fresh earth marked the spot where Ava was buried. Two large memorial ribbons lay against a fence. Adjacent to the site is a grave marker for “Baby Boy Worthington,” dated 2001.


Officials declined to comment on how the boy was associated with the family or how he might have died.

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Neighbors said they knew something had occurred when at least 100 cars and trucks claimed every parking space on the street for three to four days straight.

“Both before and after her death, folks were down there around the clock,” said Ron Sherk, a 35-year resident of the quiet neighborhood. “At all hours of the day and night, people just kept coming and going.”

Rita Swan, president of Children’s Healthcare Is a Legal Duty, based in Sioux City, Iowa, said she had hoped that “changing the laws in 1999 would change the behavior of the Followers of Christ.”

She expressed dismay at the thought of parents who rely on prayer to heal children suffering from easily treatable medical conditions:

“It means that they’re very stubborn people who have decided it’s more important to act out their religious beliefs than protect the life of their flesh and blood child.”


(Jessica Bruder and Dana Tims write for The Oregonian in Portland, Ore. Stuart Tomlinson contributed to this report.)

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