Rodica Radita refused to accept that her son had Type-1 diabetes and, along with her husband, withheld treatment for their son’s illness resulting in numerous hospitalizations over 12 years. Their son Alex died at 15-years-old in 2013 – weighing just 37 pounds.
Emil, 59, and Rodica, 53, are now each charged with first-degree murder.
In new details about the case, it’s been revealed that the devout Christian couple prayed for two hours before their son’s death as he lay suffering and in need of medical attention. Suspicions that the Roditas routinely resorted to prayer over medical care were confirmed after medical investigators relayed what they saw at the Rodita home when medical services were finally called.
“They said they went to church at, I think it was after 1800 hours, and they came home at about 2000 hours and that’s when the father said that he wasn’t breathing, so they prayed and they didn’t call EMS until sometime around 2200 hours,” medical investigator Shauna Mitchell told the National Post.
In testimony given to Calgary court prosecutors, Mitchell said that several members of the Raditas’ church were in the home where Alex was found.
“They were in the home praying together,” Mitchell said.
From the National Post:
And she said it was possible the boy wasn’t breathing even before the couple went to church, as she was given conflicting reports from them.
She said the mother said [Alex] was breathing at 6 p.m. that day, but his father said he wasn’t.
According to autopsy reports, Alex died from bacterial sepsis due to complications from starvation and neglect.
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