Tag: Collet Stephan

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Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Naturopathy Politics Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

The Supreme Court of Canada grants a new trial to the parents who let Ezekiel Stephan die

Crown appeals Justice Terry Clackson's decision
Ezekiel Stephan: A victim of his parents' antivaccine and pro-quackery ideology.

David and Collet Stephan were convicted in 2016 for failure to provide the necessities of life for their son Ezekiel Stephan, who died of bacterial meningitis after his parents treated him with natural remedies, supplements, and naturopathy. Unfortunately, as a result of their appeal, the Canadian Supreme Court has granted them a new trial. Predictably, they are claiming vindication. The verdict is nothing of the sort. The Stephans got off on a technicality, but this ruling will serve as propaganda for quacks for years to come.

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Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Integrative medicine Medicine Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery

Quackery and “wellness”: The case of David and Collet Stephan and their son Ezekiel

After Justice Terry Clackson's ruling
David and Collet Stephan, seen in March 2017, were convicted in 2016 of failing to provide the necessaries of life after not seeking medical attention for their son who died of bacterial meningitis.

David and Collet Stephan stand convicted of not having provided their son Ezekiel with essential medical care, which led to his death from meningitis. None of this stopped the “wellness” industry from featuring David as a speaker at its expos; that is, until it started causing bad publicity. When that happened, Stephan was unceremoniously dumped. But the quackery in “wellness” remains unchanged.

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Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Naturopathy Popular culture Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Antivaxers lobbying Rep. Jason Chaffetz to investigate the CDC fawn over parents who let their child with bacterial meningitis die of medical neglect

Del Bigtree fawns over negligent child killers as they ask people to rally at the courthouse the day of their sentencing for failing to provide the necessities of life for their child Ezekiel.

Yesterday, I took note of a meeting of advocates and lawyers with Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), the chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform (OGR), which makes him a very powerful Congressman. The group that met with him included Del Bigtree, the producer of Andrew Wakefield’s antivaccine propagandafest of a “documentary” VAXXED: […]

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Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Politics Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

The death of Ezekiel Stephan: Quackery and antivaccine views go hand in hand

Crown appeals Justice Terry Clackson's decision
Ezekiel Stephan: A victim of his parents' antivaccine and pro-quackery ideology.

About a month and a half ago, I became aware of the case of Ezekiel Stephan, a 19-month-old Canadian toddler living in Alberta who in 2012 developed bacterial meningitis. Unfortunately for Ezekiel, his parents, David and Collet Stephan, were believers in alternative medicine. They didn’t take Ezekiel to a real doctor. Instead, they relied on […]

Categories
Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Another child dead from quackery: The parents say they’re being persecuted in a plot to impose forced vaccination

Crown appeals Justice Terry Clackson's decision
Ezekiel Stephan: A victim of his parents' antivaccine and pro-quackery ideology.

A couple of days ago, I wrote about a story of a sort that I’ve had to write about far too many times over the last eleven years. I wrote about the death of a child—but not just any death of a child, the death of a child who could have—should have—lived. The child’s name […]