A vegan lady found guilty of murder in her infant son’s death from starvation was given a life sentence on Monday.
Sheila O’Leary, 38, was found guilty in June of six crimes related to the death of Ezra O’Leary, including first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated manslaughter, child abuse, and two counts of child negligence. Her family had a strict vegan diet.
In Lee County, Florida, her sentence had already been delayed four times.
She informed the court she didn’t want to speak and showed no emotion while the punishment was being read.
Ryan Patrick O’Leary, her husband, is still incarcerated and is facing the same allegations.
Investigators said the Cape Coral-based couple claimed their family only consumed raw fruits and vegetables, despite the child also receiving breast milk.
When he passed away in September 2019, the 18-month-old youngster weighed 17 pounds and was the size of a seven-month-old newborn, according to a police report.
According to the authorities, the couple also had two additional children, aged 3 and 5, who were also underweight.
The two, according to state attorney Amira Fox, were treated with “severe negligence.”
According to court documents, a fourth kid had been given back to her biological father in a previous starvation case in Virginia.
Ezra had not eaten for a week before he passed away, according to the doctors.
Ezra stopped breathing, and Sheila and Ryan, who is also facing murder charges and is awaiting trial, called 911.
The youngster was declared deceased at the scene by paramedics. The elder three kids of the marriage were also evaluated.
In December 2019, once Ezra’s cause of death was made public, the two were accused.
There have never been any images made public that reveal the kid’s condition just before he passed away.
However, the prosecution during Sheila’s trial painted a picture of a malnourished infant who wept nonstop.
She made the decision to ignore his screams. She could see his bones without a scale.
Sara Miller, an assistant state attorney, claimed “She didn’t need a scale to hear his scream.”
The parents also had two very underweight children, ages three and five.
One had so bad dental hygiene that their teeth were black, and their skin was yellow.
Sheila also has an 11-year-old daughter from a prior relationship, and since she spent time with her father in Virginia and ate a healthy diet, she had much better health than the other kids.
The three kids were given a diet by their mother that mostly comprised of rambutans, mangoes, bananas, and avocados.
If they ever visited a doctor is unknown.
Ezra was born at home and had no prior medical history.
The child had been breastfeeding when he began having breathing problems on the day of his death, according to investigators.
His parents claim that they went to sleep rather than making an emergency call.
He had completely ceased breathing by the time they opened their eyes.