Couple Sentenced for Not Getting Medical Attention for Dying Baby

An Oregon couple has been sentenced to 30 days in jail for failing to seek proper medical attention for their ailing son, who died two days after he was born in June 2023.

Blair and Taylor Edwards were each convicted Monday on one first-degree felony charge for criminal mistreatment, according to OregonLive, Oregon Public Broadcasting, and KATU. Prosecutors said that instead of seeking medical treatment when their two-day-old son, Hayden, stopped eating and began to turn pale blue, Blair, 37, and Taylor, 32, relied on praying over their son’s body and anointing him with olive oil.

“They hoped that within the hands of God, he would be OK,” Deputy District Attorney Russell Amos told the court during the couple’s sentencing, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting. “The state would suggest that within the hands of God, that God gave us the intellect and intelligence to produce high-end medical treatment and science. And nonetheless, they put their hopes in olive oil.”

OregonLive and Oregon Public Broadcasting reported that a medical examiner found that Hayden had suffered acute bilirubin encephalopathy, a neurological condition that is caused by jaundice, which was brought on by hyperbilirubinemia, an excessive amount of bilirubin in the blood.

OregonLive reported that although the medical examiner testified in court that it could not be 100% sure that baby Hayden would have recovered with immediate medical intervention, “the statistics suggest strongly that there was a very, very high probability that by taking Hayden to the doctor, he could have survived.”

The medical examiner told the court baby Hayden “was surrounded in a bedroom by people who loved him very much, but it’s those same people who sat there for over five hours and refused to do anything to help that young child… . That is why they’re here. They did nothing to save that child.”

Blair and Taylor are members of the Followers of Christ Church religious group, which has come under scrutiny for prioritizing religious approaches over medical treatments when it comes to sick children. According to KATU, Oregon officials said at least 20 children whose families belong to the church have died since 1990 due to their families prioritizing purported faith-based treatments instead of taking a medical or scientific response.

In court, prosecutors warned other church members looking on from the galley that the state would continue to prosecute other parents who ignore medical needs and instead rely on prayer. “We will continue to prosecute members of this church or any other person who fails to seek necessary medical treatment for a child,” Senior Deputy District Attorney Rusty Amos told the courtroom, according to OregonLive.

Blair and Taylor have four children, one of whom was born in the last two years since they were charged. As part of their sentencing, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported the parents will be required to regularly take their children to a pediatrician and maintain health insurance, while also notifying their probation officer anytime one of their children become sick or injured.