No one called 9-1-1, Irwin said.
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Grant says Deborah Leonard told him she and daughter Sarah Ferguson hit Lucas Leonard with a cord.
Four other church members, including the victims’ 33-year-old sister, Sarah Ferguson, have been charged with assault. Both are charged with first-degree manslaughter, and more charges are expected.
Bruce Leonard snr, 65, and Deborah Leonard, 59, are accused of causing Lucas’ Leonard’s death at Word of Life Church in Chadwicks, New York.
“We still have not concluded why the session turned so violent”, he said. Lucas was pronounced dead at a local hospital shortly afterwards. Inside, officers found Christopher Leonard and transported him to a nearby hospital. He had to be coaxed out of hiding near the church when police arrived.
An all night spiritual season went so wrong when a parent whipped their teen son with an electrical cord and a belt during a deadly religious session.
Family members drove Lucas Leonard to nearby St. Luke’s Hospital on Monday afternoon, after discovering that he was not breathing, police said.
“There is absolutely no indication of any sexual abuse to any of the children”, he said.
Inserra said last night he wasn’t sure whether anyone else would be charged. “They are at this point the true victims”, he said. The beatings included blows to the genital area of the teens.
Lucas Leonard, 19, whose family was immersed in Word of Life’s secretive practices, said that he was the one, that he wanted church elders to die and that he had considered making a voodoo doll of one church leader. Their 17-year-old son, Christopher, was also injured.
Raised voices prompted Irwin to shift five children in a different room so that they don’t get scared.
It was around 10 a.m. on Monday that other church members ran to the church deacon to say that they were afraid Lucas was dead. He was on the floor on the main sanctuary, but “alert enough to answer questions”. Irwin’s mother was performing CPR on the teen, he said. The defendants include Daniel Irwin’s brother, Joseph Irwin.
An attorney for the mother, Deborah Leonard, said she felt helpless to stop an “intervention” that spiraled into severe punishment by others at Word of Life church. The interrogation was videotaped.
“We weren’t originally isolated from the community”, she said, adding that over time issues arose between the church and its community.
Bruce Leornard, left, and Deborah Leonard, center, enter a courtroom of before their arraignment, Tuesday, October 13, 2015 in New Hartford.
Leonard has been a church member for eight years.
Asked about such claims, Inserra told reporters this week: “I’ve heard that term on the street and I’ve even read it in the news”.
Mr Garramone said he did not believe his client was responsible for the fatal injuries.
Bail for the other four church members was set Wednesday at $50,000 each. All of the people charged in relation to the death are pleading not guilty. At the conclusion of the hearing, a judge ruled there was sufficient evidence to sustain the charges.
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Assistant District Attorney Dawn Lupi said there is “strong possibility” Irwin and Ferguson will face more serious charges.
