OREGON CITY, Ore. (RNS) As Neil Beagley lay dying on his grandmother’s bed, his parents did not take him to a hospital or call 9-1-1 or make any lifesaving efforts, a prosecutor told jurors Tuesday (Jan. 19).
“They did nothing because that was their belief,” prosecutor Greg Horner said in his opening statement at the trial of Jeffrey and Marci Beagley, the second faith-healing trial in as many years in Oregon.
The Oregon City couple is charged with criminally negligent homicide for failing to provide adequate medical care for their 16-year-old son, Neil Beagley, who died June 17, 2008, from an untreated urinary tract blockage.
The Beagleys were unaware that Neil’s kidneys were failing and believed he had the flu, their attorneys said. The Beagleys treated him with faith-healing rituals practiced by their church, the Followers of Christ, a nondenominational congregation with a long history of children dying from treatable medical conditions.
Marci Beagley told police investigators “we did everything we knew how to do” for Neil, Horner told the jury. “That’s not good enough.”
The parents’ response to their son’s plight was “an outrageous deviation from the standard of care our community expects and demands,” Horner said.
But their attorney, Wayne Mackeson, countered that the Beagleys did not fail their duty as parents “in a criminal way.” The Beagleys are caring parents who raised three daughters and mourn the loss of Neil, their only son and “the crown prince of the family,” Mackeson said.
“There’s no evidence to suggest that Neil was in any way compromised physically,” he said.
But Horner gave jurors a dire picture of a teenager in rapidly failing health. Had Neil Beagley sought medical care, there was an excellent chance he “would have led a full and fulfilling life,” Horner said.
A key point in the case is Neil Beagley’s age. Oregon law allows children 15 and older to independently obtain medical treatment.
“If someone gets sick at 16, they’re old enough to make their own choices,” Marci Beagley told detectives. “Everyone knew Neil’s wishes,” she said. “He put his trust in God.”
