Atlanta vegans get life in prison for murdering son with diet
This is a story of two parents who were recently sentenced to life in prison for the death of their 6-week-old son whom they were found guilty of murdering via malnutrition. They claim they did everything to raise their child on a healthy diet. However, all of the expert testimony that was provided in the trial strongly suggests that the diet simply was not sufficient. Here's the catch though:
...the parents are vegan and were attempting to raise their child on a strict vegan diet.
You may or may not have heard this story. I have a feeling you haven't heard it because, despite the fact that it involves sensitive topics of interest, the story has received very little coverage since the guilty verdict was handed down by the jury nearly a month ago. Even major media outlets such as CNN -- which is headquartered in Atlanta where the tragedy occurred -- have given zero attention to the story. I ended up reading about the story in a one page spot in People magazine which, in itself, is pretty interesting because finding real news in People is a little like finding a speech from the Pope reprinted in the middle of a sex toy catalog.
Here's the specifics. The mother, Jade Sanders (27), and father, Lamont Thomas (31), rushed their child, Crown Shakur, to the hospital across the street from their northern Atlanta residence on April 24th, 2004 when the infant began to have trouble breathing. However, it was already too late and Crown was pronounced dead on arrival from malnutrition-related pneumonia. He weighed only 3.5 pounds at the time of death. Though, to be fair, he was born prematurely and his abnormally low weight can partially be attributed to that.
Sanders and Thomas claim that Crown showed no signs of illness until minutes before his death. However, there is no way to officially verify this as Crown had never been to a doctor during his short life -- not even when he was born. Despite the fact that his parents lived across the street from a hospital, they feared he may come into contact with germs in a hospital and chose to have him born at home the old-fashioned way.
Crown Shakur
"Did This Baby Die from
a Vegan Diet?"
(People headline [05-28-07])
But what about the diet? Crown was fed a diet that largely consisted of breast milk, soy milk and organic apple juice. While the breast and soy milks were appropriate, it was later found that the apple juice was not. And, even though it was an organic juice therefore appropriate for a vegan diet, it nonetheless carried a label indicating that it was not for use in infant diets. Ultimately, Sanders and Thomas claim that they simply tried and failed to raise their child the healthiest way they knew how: by feeding him a vegan diet.
However, Fulton County prosecutor Chuck Boring made his claim to the jury that what the parents fed their child was not the issue so much as how much they fed their child. There is no record of how frequently Crown was fed, however, the picture Boring paints of the child at the time of his death would indicate a low frequency: "Every bone in this child's body was protruding. There was no fat or muscle whatsoever. ... This child wasn't fed enough of anything."
The jury was inclined to agree with Boring and on May 2nd, 2007 they found Jade Sanders and Lamont Thomas guilty of involuntary manslaughter, malice murder, felony murder and cruelty to children. Thomas made a plea for leniency stating "Does it make sense that people against animal cruelty would murder their child? No, it does not. I loved my son. I loved him and I know he loved me." Sanders issued similar pleas stating that, "Not once was I asked if I loved my son. I'm not a number. I'm a person. I loved my son and I did not starve him." However, as a result of receiving a guilty verdict on a count of murder, the judge had no choice but to sentence both parents to mandatory terms of life in prison.
So...
...did Crown Shakur die from the lack of animal products in his diet or did he die from the lack of anything substantial in his diet? A minor headline entitled "Death by Veganism" in the New York Times (one of the few major outlets to cover the story) would seem to suggest that the former conclusion is the case. However, the People article where I originally encountered this story contained this balanced insight that would suggest it's more complicated than that:
"Experts have clashed before on whether infants -- who require high quantities of fat and such essential vitamins as B12 and zinc -- can thrive on a vegan diet. 'It's risky,' says pediatrician William Sears, who advises vegans to consult a nutritionist. 'A child's brain grows more in the first two years than at any other time. With a vegan diet, you miss some important brain food.' Still, ensuring toddlers receive all necessary nutrients is possible with planning, says Boston librarian Clayton Cheever, 34, who, with his wife, Jackie DeLisi, 35, a graduate student, have raised two healthy children -- Samuel, 5, and Sayde, 2 -- on a vegan diet since birth. Though the kids rank approximately in the 50th percentile for height and weight, they are normal, active children who take multivitamins and eat fortified cereal and soy milk, according to their parents. 'We read a lot and have a good relationship with our pediatrician,' says Cheever. 'We're working with very competent people.'"
Both parties would appear to have intelligent perspective on the matter at hand. Perhaps Crown should have been taken to a nutritionist? Unfortunately, that wouldn't have happened as Sanders and Thomas simply did not have the funds to spend on a nutritionist.
In fact, lack of funds plays a very central role in the parents' defense as they claim it kept them from even having a fair trial. "It takes money to disprove their theories; money we don't have," Thomas said. He went on to further state, "We had no idea involuntary manslaughter was a felony. We were told for three years this was a misdemeanor. It takes money to prove this wasn't a felony; money we don't have." The parents could not afford a private attorney and had to rely on court appointed counsel.
So maybe this is a case of unfairness inherent in the system? At least a few sources seem to feel that way, including the Chicago Defender which published an editorial last week entitled, Georgia on My Mind. It suggests that the trial and sentencing of Sanders and Thomas is yet another instance of unfairness that Georgia's justice system has imposed on African Americans in the years since the Civil Rights movement.
But what if this is just a case of veganism being used as a scapegoat? Like the prosecution said, it's not a matter of what the child ate, but rather how much he ate. An article published by The Writ at FindLaw entitled, Alleged Death by Veganism: Why a False Story Has Legs describes the parents' defense as a way of appealing to the bias of the vast, omnivorous majority. That bias being that veganism is actually bad and that the dietary practice itself is at fault in the death of Crown Shakur. It evidences this claim by pointing to publications such as the New York Times with its "Death by Veganism" article which are openly and immediately critical of veganism from a health perspective and cite it as proof that Sanders and Thomas got a raw deal in court. And even a brief venture into online forums ranging in topic from animal amnesty to dietary advice would seem to indicate many people were swayed by this article. Quite simply, it would be easy to just blame veganism since it's an already controversial concept.
While the various debates have begun to take shape, the parents have been sent to prison to serve out their life sentences. Lamont Thomas' mother has visited him several times and has spoken to the media about how her son is wasting away behind bars. Specifically, she has cited that standard items on a jail house menu such as eggs, white bread, cheese, milk and meats are outside of her son's dietary limitations and, as a result, he himself is not receiving proper nourishment. While she admits she was confused at times by her son and his girlfriend's dietary approach, she believes her grandson's death was all a tragic accident and that his parents truly loved and cared about him. Referring to Jade Sanders she said "She went through the pain of delivering herself, and they don't think that's love?"
...the parents are vegan and were attempting to raise their child on a strict vegan diet.
You may or may not have heard this story. I have a feeling you haven't heard it because, despite the fact that it involves sensitive topics of interest, the story has received very little coverage since the guilty verdict was handed down by the jury nearly a month ago. Even major media outlets such as CNN -- which is headquartered in Atlanta where the tragedy occurred -- have given zero attention to the story. I ended up reading about the story in a one page spot in People magazine which, in itself, is pretty interesting because finding real news in People is a little like finding a speech from the Pope reprinted in the middle of a sex toy catalog.
Here's the specifics. The mother, Jade Sanders (27), and father, Lamont Thomas (31), rushed their child, Crown Shakur, to the hospital across the street from their northern Atlanta residence on April 24th, 2004 when the infant began to have trouble breathing. However, it was already too late and Crown was pronounced dead on arrival from malnutrition-related pneumonia. He weighed only 3.5 pounds at the time of death. Though, to be fair, he was born prematurely and his abnormally low weight can partially be attributed to that.
Sanders and Thomas claim that Crown showed no signs of illness until minutes before his death. However, there is no way to officially verify this as Crown had never been to a doctor during his short life -- not even when he was born. Despite the fact that his parents lived across the street from a hospital, they feared he may come into contact with germs in a hospital and chose to have him born at home the old-fashioned way.
Crown Shakur
"Did This Baby Die from
a Vegan Diet?"
(People headline [05-28-07])
But what about the diet? Crown was fed a diet that largely consisted of breast milk, soy milk and organic apple juice. While the breast and soy milks were appropriate, it was later found that the apple juice was not. And, even though it was an organic juice therefore appropriate for a vegan diet, it nonetheless carried a label indicating that it was not for use in infant diets. Ultimately, Sanders and Thomas claim that they simply tried and failed to raise their child the healthiest way they knew how: by feeding him a vegan diet.
However, Fulton County prosecutor Chuck Boring made his claim to the jury that what the parents fed their child was not the issue so much as how much they fed their child. There is no record of how frequently Crown was fed, however, the picture Boring paints of the child at the time of his death would indicate a low frequency: "Every bone in this child's body was protruding. There was no fat or muscle whatsoever. ... This child wasn't fed enough of anything."
The jury was inclined to agree with Boring and on May 2nd, 2007 they found Jade Sanders and Lamont Thomas guilty of involuntary manslaughter, malice murder, felony murder and cruelty to children. Thomas made a plea for leniency stating "Does it make sense that people against animal cruelty would murder their child? No, it does not. I loved my son. I loved him and I know he loved me." Sanders issued similar pleas stating that, "Not once was I asked if I loved my son. I'm not a number. I'm a person. I loved my son and I did not starve him." However, as a result of receiving a guilty verdict on a count of murder, the judge had no choice but to sentence both parents to mandatory terms of life in prison.
So...
...did Crown Shakur die from the lack of animal products in his diet or did he die from the lack of anything substantial in his diet? A minor headline entitled "Death by Veganism" in the New York Times (one of the few major outlets to cover the story) would seem to suggest that the former conclusion is the case. However, the People article where I originally encountered this story contained this balanced insight that would suggest it's more complicated than that:
"Experts have clashed before on whether infants -- who require high quantities of fat and such essential vitamins as B12 and zinc -- can thrive on a vegan diet. 'It's risky,' says pediatrician William Sears, who advises vegans to consult a nutritionist. 'A child's brain grows more in the first two years than at any other time. With a vegan diet, you miss some important brain food.' Still, ensuring toddlers receive all necessary nutrients is possible with planning, says Boston librarian Clayton Cheever, 34, who, with his wife, Jackie DeLisi, 35, a graduate student, have raised two healthy children -- Samuel, 5, and Sayde, 2 -- on a vegan diet since birth. Though the kids rank approximately in the 50th percentile for height and weight, they are normal, active children who take multivitamins and eat fortified cereal and soy milk, according to their parents. 'We read a lot and have a good relationship with our pediatrician,' says Cheever. 'We're working with very competent people.'"
Both parties would appear to have intelligent perspective on the matter at hand. Perhaps Crown should have been taken to a nutritionist? Unfortunately, that wouldn't have happened as Sanders and Thomas simply did not have the funds to spend on a nutritionist.
In fact, lack of funds plays a very central role in the parents' defense as they claim it kept them from even having a fair trial. "It takes money to disprove their theories; money we don't have," Thomas said. He went on to further state, "We had no idea involuntary manslaughter was a felony. We were told for three years this was a misdemeanor. It takes money to prove this wasn't a felony; money we don't have." The parents could not afford a private attorney and had to rely on court appointed counsel.
So maybe this is a case of unfairness inherent in the system? At least a few sources seem to feel that way, including the Chicago Defender which published an editorial last week entitled, Georgia on My Mind. It suggests that the trial and sentencing of Sanders and Thomas is yet another instance of unfairness that Georgia's justice system has imposed on African Americans in the years since the Civil Rights movement.
But what if this is just a case of veganism being used as a scapegoat? Like the prosecution said, it's not a matter of what the child ate, but rather how much he ate. An article published by The Writ at FindLaw entitled, Alleged Death by Veganism: Why a False Story Has Legs describes the parents' defense as a way of appealing to the bias of the vast, omnivorous majority. That bias being that veganism is actually bad and that the dietary practice itself is at fault in the death of Crown Shakur. It evidences this claim by pointing to publications such as the New York Times with its "Death by Veganism" article which are openly and immediately critical of veganism from a health perspective and cite it as proof that Sanders and Thomas got a raw deal in court. And even a brief venture into online forums ranging in topic from animal amnesty to dietary advice would seem to indicate many people were swayed by this article. Quite simply, it would be easy to just blame veganism since it's an already controversial concept.
While the various debates have begun to take shape, the parents have been sent to prison to serve out their life sentences. Lamont Thomas' mother has visited him several times and has spoken to the media about how her son is wasting away behind bars. Specifically, she has cited that standard items on a jail house menu such as eggs, white bread, cheese, milk and meats are outside of her son's dietary limitations and, as a result, he himself is not receiving proper nourishment. While she admits she was confused at times by her son and his girlfriend's dietary approach, she believes her grandson's death was all a tragic accident and that his parents truly loved and cared about him. Referring to Jade Sanders she said "She went through the pain of delivering herself, and they don't think that's love?"