Vegans Undernourish their children, leading to their death.

The_Minister

Look here

Vegan couple sentenced to life over baby's death
Malnourished baby was fed soy milk and apple juice, weighed 3 1/2 pounds

Updated: 2:55 p.m. ET May 9, 2007
ATLANTA - A vegan couple were sentenced Wednesday to life in prison for the death of their malnourished 6-week-old baby boy, who was fed a diet largely consisting of soy milk and apple juice.

Superior Court Judge L.A. McConnell imposed the mandatory sentences on Jade Sanders, 27, and Lamont Thomas, 31. Their son, Crown Shakur, weighed just 3 1/2 pounds when he died of starvation on April 25, 2004.

The couple were found guilty May 2 of malice murder, felony murder, involuntary manslaughter and cruelty to children. A jury deliberated about seven hours before returning the guilty verdicts.

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Defense lawyers said the first-time parents did the best they could while adhering to the lifestyle of vegans, who typically use no animal products. They said Sanders and Thomas did not realize the baby, who was born at home, was in danger until minutes before he died.

But prosecutors said the couple intentionally neglected their child and refused to take him to the doctor even as the baby’s body wasted away.

“No matter how many times they want to say, ‘We’re vegans, we’re vegetarians,’ that’s not the issue in this case,” said prosecutor Chuck Boring. “The child died because he was not fed. Period.”


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Live vote: Do parents deserve life in prison?


Although the life sentences were automatic, Sanders and Thomas begged for leniency before sentencing. Sanders urged the judge to look past his “perception” of the couple.

“I loved my son — and I did not starve him,” she said.

When the judge told the defendants they could ask for a new trial, Thomas hung his head low.

“I’m dying every day in there,” he said, “and that could take three years.”

© 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18574603/?GT1=9951


Seriously though, do any of you force your children to copy your dietary habits?

may be slightly joking
EDIT: I'm going to get rid of the trolling, so that you can see what I'm asking.

county

a bit harsh on all Vegan and Vegetarians but that couple deserve everything they get

seamus

Nice troll.

This sums it up nicely:
“No matter how many times they want to say, ‘We’re vegans, we’re vegetarians,’ that’s not the issue in this case,” said prosecutor Chuck Boring. “The child died because he was not fed. Period.”

It's very much possible to raise a child, even a small baby on a vegan diet, but you really, really need to know what you're doing. The best course of action for vegan mothers is to breastfeed their child, while upping their own nutrient intake.

Unfortunately some people don't know the consequences or effects of switching to a vegan diet on an adult body, but do it anyway for whatever reason, and don't bother reading up on it. Then they have kids. And this happens.

CherieAmour

The_Minister wrote:

Oh sure, you won't hurt animals, but you'll victimise your children! You all make me sick.

Holy crap!! That's a bit harsh isn't it?? Yes this is an awful, tragic story and couple deserved what they got - and sure, vegetarianism/veganism cannot be even considered on behalf of babies and children who need the best start they can get, but you can't accuse the entire vegetarian/vegan population of commiting this atrocity!!

...going for the sensationalist headline with the thread title methinks....

hamsterboy

I'm a vegan and hope those two parents ROT IN HELL.
It's all very well to have beliefs but to make your child suffer and die for them is insane.
These people, regardless of weather they eat meat or not, were unfit parents. If they cared so little about their child then no doubt the child was in danger eitherways.
As for the "Oh sure, you won't hurt animals, but you'll victimise your children! You all make me sick"....think thats a bit uncalled for.
I don't victimise children....Thats a stupid, sweeping statement made by the same kind of person that would have cars banned from the road coz someone got killed ina crash.
Think it out, grow up and stop posting knee-jerk statements on a board supposed to be for the use of vegans/veggies. Prob would have been better in AH

lady_j

You must be bored today trying provoke reaction. And you a mod...

I think you missed the point, they didnt feed the child. Most baby food consists a puréed veg so keeping a baby would not on a vegan diet was not the issue. Milk is the only issue and the mother could have breastfed. The child wasnt fed, that was the crime.

che81

people picked up on this story because the parents are vegan. many children around the world are malnourished by meat eating parents who just don't have a clue/give a crap about how to take care of a newborn. the parents' lack of knowledge was detrimental to this child. any vegan parent (who wants their child also to be vegan) understands that the child must breastfeed from birth until at least 18months (if not 24 months).

if i ever have children i hope to raise them mostly vegan. i feel it's the best diet for them. but of course i will breastfeed for at least 2 years. if i couldn't breastfeed for whatever reason i would of course put my kids on formula. but i have a clue.

Washout

Im a vegitarian.

so are my 5 siblings and lso my parents.

we have all been raised as vegitarians since birth and are all healthy.

so screw your topic title on brandishing all vegitarian and vegan families as being cruel to Children.

I am currently raising my daughter on a completly vegitarian diet, in fact we dont even have eggs in our diet (altough diary yes)also she is 30 months old and she is a thriving and an extremly happy child.

there are also plenty of Vegan parents who raise Children on vegan diets. those parents in the news report just had no idea on how to raise a a baby on a specialised diet. If they ever bothered to consult a doctor or dietitian to help them then that child would be alive today.. and for that they are defo guilty of their crime.

rockbeer

"Vegetarians Undernourish their children, leading to their death"

Firstly they were vegans.

Secondly, Are you a complete idiot? Do you think every vegetarian/vegan baby dies of malnutrition? Can't help thinking that if that were the case it might have caught somebody's attention before now.

This is one of the most pathetic attempts at blatant trolling I've ever seen. And, as has already been pointed out, you're a mod. Would have hoped you'd know better.

Nature Boy

I don't think you can blame a vegan diet on the child's death. You can only blame the parents for not feeding the child properly, the fact that they are vegans is irrelevant.

Why would they feed a 6 week old child soy milk and apple juice? Surely a six week old child should be drinking breast milk and nothing else? Or do they stop after 6 weeks?

As has been said, there have been lots of people raised healthily on vegetarian/vegan diets. They only thing to blame here is the parents. I'm sure if I looked I could find an article on a malnourished child that was fed the standard animal food diet.

P.S the prosecutor's surname was Boring, what kind of a name is that???

Dori Duz

The_Minister, how have you gotten away with not being banned for blatent trolling?
I'm not vegan or vegetarian, by the way. The issue with this diet was nothing to do with veganism. Giving a 6 week old apple juice?!? I wouldn't give a 6 month old apple juice. It's far too acidic. The parents were neglegent, it had nothing to do veganism.
Get over yourself. I can't believe you're a moderator.

WhiteWashMan

woah!

easy there people.

theres a topic on something that happened, and that title can be read two ways. you can take it as a generalisation, but it can also be read as relating to this specific incident.

its also a valid topic, which i have seen few replies to. if you want to discuss the post, then discuss it. and it doesnt matter tf the poster is a mod. mods can post as well, so get of your collective high horse anyone who has complained about a mod putting this up, and in the words of the last poster, 'get over yourself'

discuss the topic, or dont. simple choice.

Tar.Aldarion

The_Minister wrote:

Seriously though, do any of you force your children to copy your dietary habits?

You mean like all meat eating people in the world?


Anyway, those idiot parents sicken me. It's funny how they get life prison but if they had it aborted near term it is legal.
Children may be reared properly, they may not, no generalisations please.
Also, this place needs an active mod.
Blub, where did you disappear to?

Samos

Although everyone here has already said it, I think it needs to be stressed that, whatever views the parents held, they malnourished their child. The headline may as well read that they were Hindu or Scientologists or working class or average boring normal meat-eating middle-of-the-road pepople. These characteristics do not imply negligence anymore than being vegan does. It would seem that the OP has prejudices against people who think differently from him, because this tragic event does not constitute a valid argument against raising a baby on a vegan diet.

However, I think the question, "do any of you force your children to copy your dietary habits?", is a good one, albeit a loaded one. I think we can agree that a young child is incapable of deciding what is best for itself, and it is the duty of the parents to guide as best they can. (This does not necessarily mean following what the majority believe.) However, once the child is old enough to decide for itself, it should not be forced by it parents to do otherwise.

Looking back, I might resent my parents for feeding me meat, or raising me as a Catholic, or curtailing my freedom of expression... But they were merely doing what they thought was right, even though I may perceive all of that as misguided now. Maybe all the rigidity of their views made me more crtical and more likely to disagree... I would be inclined to give my children more freedom to decide, but then they'd have less to rebel against, and would probably end up having much the same views as me!

The Minister, how would you raise your children? Would you impose your views on them?

Vegeta

Would you punish your kids for eating meat or would you be dissapointed but respect their choice?

Tar.Aldarion

The latter.

rockbeer

The Minister, glad to see you changed the title to "Vegans..."

Shall we take that as an acknowledgment that you were being deliberately inflammatory?

Slaphead07

Vegeta wrote:

Would you punish your kids for eating meat or would you be dissapointed but respect their choice?

The idea that you would punish your child for eating meat is absurd. Both my children, now teenagers, were raised as vegetarian. They're the healthiest children I know. My 17 year old daughter has gone over to "the dark side" (her words!) and eats chicken regularly but my 14 year old son is a staunch veggie still. I suspect my daughter's meat eating is partly a teenage rebellion thing and partly a teenage peer-pressure thing but she still has a well developed palate and will eat well when at home. She does like to wind us up though! Mostly I'd encourage my kids to think for themselves as I did.

In answer to the OP, those parents were jailed, and quite correctly, for being too thick to look after a baby - not for being vegan. I suspect the fact that were vegan got them bigger headlines than if they were burger chompin' steak chewin' good ol' boys. In fairness western society is guilty of inflicting a poor diet on their youth - it's just more subtle and taking longer to kill them

sudzs

county wrote:

a bit harsh on all Vegan and Vegetarians but that couple deserve everything they get

Disagree strongly. This happened through ignorance, not malice.

Remember the couple in england a few years ago who killed their baby with salt. They fed him on "Smash" and gravey made from granules. They knew no better. A sad reflection on both societies.

WhiteWashMan

rockbeer wrote:

The Minister, glad to see you changed the title to "Vegans..."

Shall we take that as an acknowledgment that you were being deliberately inflammatory?

shall we stop playing tit for tat and one-up-manship and keep with the discussion?

Remember the couple in england a few years ago who killed their baby with salt. They fed him on "Smash" and gravey made from granules. They knew no better. A sad reflection on both societies.

if i recall they were let off about a month-6 weeks ago. i think. strange, i recall the case, and i recall i was in the car listening to the radio about it. i know what station it was on, and i remember the presenter, but i cant recall what scentence if any was passed. i think they were just let off. im sure someone will stick in the correct verdict anyway.

Samos

Vegeta wrote:

Would you punish your kids for eating meat or would you be dissapointed but respect their choice?

I'd respect their choice... but it's all hypothetical for me because I don't have any kids and would prefer to keep it that way!

lizzyvera

In most countries people don't eat much meat anyway, certainly not every day. Poor people don't get much more than grain. Obviously that's not healthy, but their children don't all die of malnutrition.
I would say in general vegan children would have fewer health problems than fat children brought up on fast food.

simu

I think those parents were a bit nuts. Any full-term baby whose weight dropped to three and a half pounds would look obviously starved. Why did they not go to a doctor? Although, if it they were in Ireland, the baby's weight would have been monitored by a public health nurse - do they have a safety net system like this in the US, I wonder?

Nothing to do with veganism, though but I guess it makes for more dramatic headlines.:rolleyes:

Tar.Aldarion

'Baby not given enough rabbit food', it could sell!