A Michigan woman failed to seek medical treatment for her newborn daughter, leading to the baby’s death, a police chief testified in court last week.
Lansing State Journal reports that Rachel Piland, of Lansing, refused to take her infant to the hospital, even after the baby couldn’t breathe properly and had blood running out of her nose. The suspect listened to gospel speeches instead, according to police, while the little girl suffered. The infant, just 4-days-old, passed away.
According to a detective working the case, Piland declared that her baby was fine and that “God makes no mistakes.” She’s also accused of preventing her mother from calling for medical help for the infant.
On Feb. 6, a midwife told Piland she needed to take her baby in for medical treatment for jaundice. The midwife warned the mother that her baby could possibly develop brain damage if jaundice was left untreated. Piland continued to ignore the warning signs as the baby’s health deteriorated.
On Feb. 9, the suspect found her baby deceased in a bouncy seat, according to Fox News. Instead of of calling for medical help, authorities said she called church members and friends to come over to her home and pray over the baby and massage her. Piland’s husband, Joshua Piland, reportedly said he didn’t try CPR on the baby because he only knew how to perform it on adults.
“They then brought Abigail upstairs to pray for her. Joshua continued to massage Abigail, attempting to get her good air,” Detective Peter Scaccia testified. “Both Josh and (Rachel) reached out to friends and fellow church members to come to their home and pray for Abigail’s resurrection, but never called the police.”
Piland’s brother called authorities from his California home. Police reported that the brother was the only person who alerted them to the incident. When authorities arrived to Pilard’s home, they found her with friends, praying over in the infant.
Piland, along with her husband, Joshua Piland, were both arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter. According to court records, the couple belongs to the religious group, Faith Tech Ministries, an organization that believes in faith-based healing.
If convicted, the couple faces up to 15 years each, behind bars.
[Feature Photo: Lansing Police Department]
