Lansing Infant Dies After Parents Refuse Medical Advice, Insisting ‘God … Makes No Mistakes’
A baby girl is dead, two days after a Lansing woman refused to seek medical attention saying her baby was fine, telling a midwife, "God ... makes no mistakes."
Rachel Piland was warned that her baby was jaundiced and that it could lead to brain damage or even death. Piland and her husband Joshua Piland have each been charged with involuntary manslaughter.
The Lansing State Journal reports that Abigail Piland was born on February 6th of this year. In the days following her birth, the midwife and Rachel Piland's mother both urged her to seek medical attention for her daughter. Even when blood began coming out of the baby's nose, Piland would not allow her mother to call for help and went to listen to sermons. The Pilands were involved with a Lansing-based church known as 'Faith Tech Ministries,' a nondenominational organization which aligns itself with 'Pentecostal' or 'full gospel' churches.
Seven months after their baby girl's death, the Pilands have been released on bond. They are scheduled to appear in court on October 5th and could each face 15 years in prison if convicted.