Mom Who Starved 18-Month-Old Son To Death On Strict Vegan Diet Sentenced To Life

A Florida mother who starved her 18-month-old son to death by forcing him to follow a strict vegan diet has been sentenced to life in prison.

The 38-year-old woman, Sheila O'Leary, was convicted on first-degree murder charges in connection with the starvation death of her toddler son, Ezra O'Leary, in September 2019. A court sentenced her Monday after it was postponed several times, Law & Crime reported.

Sheila and her husband Ryan, from Cape Coral, followed a strict vegan diet and fed the child breast milk, raw fruits and vegetables. Ezra was just the size of a 7-month-old baby when he died due to "complications from severe malnutrition and dehydration." He weighed only 17 pounds at the time of his death, according to medical reports.

While responding to Ezra's death, investigators also found the couple's two other children, aged 3 and 5, who were malnourished and victims of "extreme neglect and child abuse." In an earlier malnutrition case, an 11-year-old fourth child was returned to the biological father, Tampa Bay Times reported.

Following Ezra's death, police arrested the couple on multiple charges, including first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated manslaughter, child abuse and child neglect.

Ryan also faces additional charges of sexual assault of a victim under the age of 12 and lewd and lascivious behavior/molestation of a victim younger than 12. His trial has not yet started.

"The evidence and crime scene, in this case, are gut-wrenching. These are images as a mother and State Attorney I will not be able to forget," Amira Fox, state attorney for the 20th Judicial Circuit of Florida said after the indictment.

Sheila was found guilty of all charges in June. She had requested a new trial in Lee County two weeks back, however, her request was rejected.

The court sentenced her to 30 years each for aggravated child abuse and manslaughter and five years each for two counts of child neglect and a count of child abuse, which could be served concurrently. She is also ordered to have no contact with her children.