Relatives of accused in Elizabeth Struhs trial tell court the religious group they belong to a cult
Diabetes experts have given evidence at the trial of a religious group, charged with the murder and manslaughter of an eight-year-old girl Toowoomba girl. Nurses and doctors who treated the type-1 diabetic in a previous instance of neglect have told a supreme court judge she was the sickest child they had ever seen.
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00:00When Elizabeth Strews was diagnosed with a life-threatening disease, her father saved
00:07her life.
00:08But within two and a half years, Jason Strews would be accused of ending it.
00:13He and his wife, Kerry Strews, along with a dozen other members of their home-based
00:18church, are charged with the murder and manslaughter of their daughter in January 2022.
00:24She died in her Toowoomba home after her insulin injections were withheld due to the group's
00:29religious beliefs that medication wasn't necessary.
00:33Medical experts who were involved in Elizabeth's first hospital admission in 2019 were called
00:38to give evidence in the Supreme Court trial.
00:41One clinician told the court her undiagnosed diabetic ketoacidosis symptoms were so severe
00:47she was minutes from death.
00:48She was the most seriously unwell child I've ever seen.
00:53The court has already heard Mr Strews, who was not part of the congregation at this point,
00:58knew she'd been sick, but was respecting his wife's wishes.
01:01However, once Elizabeth became unresponsive, he took action.
01:06An interview conducted by a detective sergeant was played to the court.
01:10Mr Strews said he told Mrs Strews their daughter's help was paramount.
01:14She would say,
01:15God is going to heal her, and I'd say, I don't think so.
01:19I said, I'm taking her to hospital.
01:21In Mrs Strews' police interview, she told officers she knew something was wrong, but
01:26didn't think it was that serious, and believed God would intervene and heal her.
01:31When asked if she'd do anything differently, now knowing the type 1 diabetes diagnosis,
01:37she said no.
01:39Mrs Strews was convicted and jailed after this episode in 2021 for serious neglect.
01:44And it's then when prosecutors allege her husband converted to her religion, adopting
01:49their hardline stance.
01:51The trial continues.