Sheila O’Leary, 38, had her family follow a strict vegan diet, according to NBC News. O’Leary said that her family adheres to a strict diet of raw fruits and vegetables. Her husband – Ryan Patrick O’Leary – told investigators that his infant son also received breast milk.
Ezra O’Leary – the Cape Coral couple’s 18-month-old son – died on Sept. 27, 2019. Police said the baby weighed just 17 pounds at the time of death. Authorities estimate that baby Ezra was the size of a 7-month-old infant when he died.
Prosecutors said baby Ezra died from “complications from severe malnutrition and dehydration.”
“This child did not eat. He was starved to death over 18 months,” Francine Donnorummo – the special victims unit chief at the Lee County State Attorney’s Office – said at the trial.
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