Not guilty: David and Collet Stephan acquitted of failing to provide the necessaries of life

Justice Clackson simply read from the introduction of his reasons for judgement. It includes the following information:

“I have concluded that Ezekiel did have meningitis. the Stephans did not know the (sic) Ezekiel had meningitis but were alert to the possibility and monitoring for symptoms. The meningitis Ezekiel had was viral, and he did not die from meningitis, but from the lack of oxygen. Therefore, I have concluded that the Stephans are not guilty of the charge.”

Clackson cited evidence from Drs. Adeagbo, Sauvageau and Burkholder and noted that he remained unconvinced that Ezekiel died of bacterial meningitis, but rather was satisfied at Dr. Any Sauvageau’s conclusion that the child died of viral meningitis.

He concluded that the Stephans “knew what meningitis was, knew that bacterial meningitis could be very serious, knew what symptoms to look for in relation to bacterial meningitis, knew that viral meningitis was much less serious and saw no symptoms of either. They thought their son had some sort of croup or flu like viral infection. They were concerned and monitoring Ezekiel for any signs that something more serious was causing Ezekiel’s sickness.”

He added that they physical evidence supports Dr. Sauvageau’s conclusion that the toddler died because he was deprived of oxygen. That occurred because he stopped breathing and the resulting oxygen deprivation lasted long enough to lead to his death.

Outside of the courthouse, David Stephan said the acquittal was a long time coming.

“It’s shocking, because it’s been seven years of our life fighting this. And so, it’s become a part of our identity. And it’s just a beautiful thought that we can move on with our lives, mourn the loss of Ezekiel appropriately, and see where life takes us from there.”

Prior to the second trial, the Stephans attempted to recover one million dollars in previous court costs from Alberta Justice, but were told by Madame Justice E.A. Hughes to file a civil statement of claim. David told reporters that may still go ahead.

“It’s my understanding that we will be proceeding with court costs. Seeking for costs on this whole situation based on disclosure issues and what not.”

Stephan also said the acquittal was a victory for parents who were not negligent in providing care for their children, but rather chose to treat them in different ways.

“It was made not of that this was not a case of neglect. And so, this is in my opinion… this is a very big precedent setting case that helps protect parental rights so that it’s not about choice of care that you can feel you may be criminally negligent or criminally liable if you decide to opt for homeopathy or naturopathy or anything else. And that’s what this case was largely being made into, even though that wasn’t the case at hand.”

Collet he said, is now doing well, and as a mother – the proceedings were the most difficult on her.

“This has been a significant turnaround in regard to the justice system, or our experience with the justice system over the past six years. Cause we were getting bulldozed over and over and over up until June of this year.”

Defense Lawyer Shawn Buckley said he, Jason Demers and Ingrid Hess feel an immense sense of relief.

“At the last trial I was expecting an acquittal and we didn’t get one and it just feels like a weight is off our shoulders right now.”

It’s not clear at this point if the Crown will appeal the verdict.

The couple was convicted in their first trial by jury back in 2016. However, the Supreme Court of Canada set aside the conviction in May 2018 and ordered a new trial because of errors in the judge’s charge to the jury.

by Lara Fominoff with video by Brandyn Montgomery

Not guilty: David and Collet Stephan acquitted of failing to provide the necessaries of life

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