In front of a packed courtroom Thursday afternoon, a jury found a faith-healing couple guilty of second-degree manslaughter in the death of their newborn, who died hours after his birth in 2009.
Closing arguments in a faith-healing trial in Clackamas County wrapped up Wednesday, a day after emotional testimony from Dale and Shannon Hickman, members of a church that believes in faith healing.
The two were arrested for second-degree manslaughter after a bacterial infection led to their child's death, nine hours after he was born in September of 2009. Investigators said the couple did not seek the help of a doctor.
The two face a possible 18 months in prison and $250,000 fine.
Defense attorneys asked the judge to allow the jury to be able to also consider a lesser charge of criminal mistreatment. The request was allowed, but it would require that 10 or more jurors vote not guilty on the manslaughter charge.
Prosecutor John Wentworth told jurors in closing arguments that the Followers of Christ members viewed medicine as poison. While rejecting doctors and medicine, the defense called on doctors to testify, he pointed out.
He said to deny a baby medical care was a crime. "What would a reasonable person do if you thought your baby was about to die?" he asked.
"They didn't even try," he said of the parents. "What kind of parent doesn't even try?"
In Tuesday testimony, Dale Hickman said his son seemed fine at birth, but several hours later things changed. Hickman says he sat down and held his son until he stopped breathing.
"There was nothing that could have been done" to save the baby, Hickman said.
Shannon Hickman, the baby's mother, took the stand next. When asked about decisions like calling 911, she responded: "The wife submits to the man, and he's the head of the household." When asked what to do when her husband wasn't present, she answered that it was her duty to find another man to consult.
The couple belongs to Oregon City's Followers of Christ Church, whose members believe in spiritual healing and have in the past faced charges following the death or illness of a child.