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who has himself been charged with sexual assault and sexual conduct with a minor. (Justin
Hill, Salt Lake Tribune, Internet, 6/11/05)
General Assembly and Church of the First Born
Religious Beliefs Defense Denied
Dewayne and Maleta Schmidt, members of the General Assembly and Church of the
Firstborn, have been found guilty of reckless homicide by a Johnson County (IN) jury in
connection with the death of their newborn daughter two years ago. They relied on faith
healing rather than medical intervention to help the struggling infant. Three other children
from the church have died since 1999 for want of medical treatment.
Superior Court 2 Judge Cynthia Emkes refused to allow the couple to present a defense
based on religious beliefs. She restricted both the prosecutors‘ presentation of evidence
about the couple‘s religion and witnesses‘ testimony about the Schmidt‘s beliefs. But
attorneys were allowed to quiz potential jurors about their general religious views the
defense apparently hoped to get a sense of how jurors might evaluate the defendants and
the evidence. The Indiana State Supreme Court ruled in 1986 that ―The legislature has
distinguished between child neglect, which results in serious bodily injury, and neglect which
results in the child‘s death. Prayer is not permitted as a defense when a caretaker engages
in omissive conduct which results in a child‘s death.‖
The Schmidts say that during their newborn‘s 31 hours of life, the child seemed at times to
respond to their prayers, sometimes looking pink and lively rather than always sick and
gray. (Michael W. Hoskins, Daily Journal, Internet, 5/7, 11, 12/05)
Grigory Grabovoy
Cult Leader Running for President
Grigory Gravoboy, a quack healer who ―raises people from the dead‖ — for money — and
claims to be the second coming of Christ, is planning to run for president of Russia.
Psychologists warn that attending Grabovoy‘s lectures is bad for both the pocket book and
mental health. (Pravda, Internet, 6/6/05)
International
FECRIS Recommended for Consultative Status with Council of Europe
The European Federation of Research and Information Centers on Sectarianism
(FECRIS) [a confederation of organizations in Europe dedicated to doing research and
providing information on cultic groups] has been recommended for ―consultative or
participatory status, as appropriate,‖ by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe. The recommendation comes only after several years‘ consideration of allegations,
made by several parliamentarians, that FECRIS has been responsible for ―falsely creating
situations of public panic or hysteria.‖ The Assembly concluded that the allegations ―have
not been substantiated.‖ FAIR News, May, 2005, pp. 1–2, 11)
Jehovah’s Witnesses
Recognition in Germany
The Berlin administrative court has ruled that the Jehovah’s Witnesses church is entitled
to the privileges enjoyed by major Catholic and Protestant churches in its jurisdiction. The
court rejected arguments that the group should be declared illegal because it refuses to
allow children to get blood transfusions. The court also said it was unable to find evidence to
support the contention that the Jehovah‘s Witnesses educational system is bad for children
or that membership harms family relationships. In addition, the court declared that critical

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accounts from people who had left the group were not reliable. (Deutsche Welle World,
Internet, 3/25/05)
Argument against Transfusion
Lawyers for a young Canadian Jehovah’s Witness who does not, on religious grounds,
want to receive a court-ordered blood transfusions if physicians deem they are necessary in
the course of her cancer treatment, argue that she should be allowed to get alternative
treatment at New York‘s Schneider Children‘s Hospital. That facility avoids transfusing
unless the life of the patient is immediately threatened, and because transfusing risks
transmission of hepatitis, HIV, and West Nile Virus. Canadian authorities argue that
transfusions are likely to be necessary in connection with the girl‘s chemotherapy. (Jane
Armstrong, Globe and Mail, Internet, 5/4/05)
Unidentified because she is a 14-year-old minor, the girl says her refusal is ―based on God‘s
word. He told us to abstain from blood and we need to obey his commandments.‖ She said
her faith informs every decision she makes. ―It‘s part of my every day. I don‘t ever stop
thinking about it. Everything that I do, I apply God‘s standard to it. Every decision I make, I
apply God‘s standards.‖ As to the law that a 14-year-old is too young to refuse a
transfusion, the extremely articulate teenager asserts: ―You can have an abortion and get
birth-control pills and there‘s no law against that.‖ (Jane Armstrong, Globe and Mail,
Internet, 5/10/05)
Transfusion Order Has “Whiff of Religious Bigotry”
―The state-instigated, court-backed campaign to force blood transfusions on a thoughtful
and tearfully reluctant adolescent smacks of judicial callousness and bureaucratic arrogance,
with just a whiff of religious bigotry.
―The girl is not about to die, and a New York hospital is ready to give her the treatment she
needs without violating her religious objection to receiving transfusions. Her family,
moreover, is caring and loving, so why should Canadian child welfare officials have to
interfere?‖ (Editorial, The Gazette, Montreal, Internet, 5/6/05)
Girl Allowed to Get “Blood Avoidance” Treatment
The British Columbia Supreme Court has ruled that a teenage cancer patient, a Jehovah’s
Witness, can transfer for chemotherapy to a New York hospital that has a ―blood avoidance
program.‖ Physicians there try to do without blood or minimize its use when treating
patients. The transfer was based on an agreement among the director of Child, Family, and
Community Services in British Columbia, the girl, and her parents. British Columbia had
earlier ordered the teenager to submit to blood transfusions if, during the course of her
treatment in the province, doctors deemed it necessary. (CP, Internet, 5/19/05)
Kingston Clan/The Order/Latter Day Church of Christ
Daughter Wants to Return
Polygamist John Daniel Kingston’s 13-year-old daughter, taken into state custody and
sent to live with relatives when he and his wife were adjudged to have abused her, now
wants to live with her mother and other siblings, who still remain apart from Kingston under
court oversight. The girl and a sister, who ran away from home after a dispute with their
parents over ear piercing, have detailed for authorities physical and verbal abuse their
father inflicted on them. (Brook Adams, Salt Lake Tribune, Internet, 4/30/05)