Dad of Alberta girl who fought transfusions lashes out at Jehovah's Witnesses

September 6, 2002

EDMONTON (CP) -- The grieving father of a 17-year-old Jehovah's Witness girl who died of leukemia says he intends to sue the religious group, claiming it destroyed his family and caused his daughter to fight against blood transfusions.
One day after Bethany Hughes died of blood cancer, her father, Lawrence Hughes, called a press conference and lashed out at the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society -- the legal organization that represents the Jehovah's Witness religion -- for what happened to his family. The religious group is opposed to blood transfusions.

A Witness spokesman called the accusations "outrageous," and pointed out that these are words from a grieving father.
Wayne McKee, a Jehovah's Witness elder in Calgary, said the church hasn't been involved in separating the family and isn't responsible for her death.
"Jehovah's Witnesses have been very supportive to the family throughout this situation and we continue to offer comfort and help."
Hughes' lawyer, Bob Calvert, said his client intends to file a worldwide class-action lawsuit against the Jehovah's Witnesses, but nothing has yet been filed.
He added others have expressed interest in joining the suit.
Calvert said he is considering whether to take the case and has been offered a retainer.
"It's complicated," he said. "There's a lot of issues to be resolved."
Hughes had split with the religious group and his family, soon after consenting to blood transfusions treatment for the teen. His wife and daughter moved from the Calgary home last June and Hughes has since filed for divorce, which includes seeking custody of his youngest daughter.
"I'm holding the Watchtower Society responsible," Hughes said outside the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton where Bethany died.
Bethany's lawyer, David Gnam, who was standing to the side as Hughes made the accusations, challenged the father in front of reporters on a number of points.
"I understand that he's a grieving father and he's lashing out, I can understand because maybe I'm lashing out too," Gnam said shortly after the heated exchange.
Hughes contends that since mid-July, when Bethany went to Edmonton for chemotherapy treatment without blood transfusions, he hasn't had access to his daughter.
Gnam agrees that Hughes didn't have a phone number to call Bethany and didn't know where she was staying, but he he said that Bethany had agreed to meet her father.
Hughes contends the visits offered had restrictions and was seeking wider access.
Both Gnam and Hughes agree that Bethany telephoned her father in Calgary once or twice a week.
Gnam said Hughes, instead of blaming the Jehovah's Witnesses, should take some responsibility as a father who introduced his daughter to the faith and taught her many of the church's beliefs.
"He was the one teaching his daughter ...."
Shortly after Bethany was diagnosed in mid-February, she lost a lengthy court battle to stop the blood transfusions. Throughout court proceedings, judges consistently went against the findings of psychiatrists and bioethicists who argued that Bethany was a mature minor. The courts awarded the province temporary custody under Alberta Child Welfare Act.
In its findings, the courts decided that the teen was pressured by her religion to refuse the transfusions and that she didn't have a free, informed will.
Jehovah's Witnesses are taught that the Bible states in Acts 15:28 that blood transfusions are against God's wishes.
Doctors gave Bethany a 40 to 50 per cent chance of beating the cancer with intensive chemotherapy and blood transfusions. But after four months of treatment, cancerous lesions appeared on her back and doctors held out little hope that she would survive.
During her last weeks, Bethany battled her disease on her own terms without blood transfusions, her mother, Arliss, said after her daughter died.
The last time Hughes saw his daughter was mid-July, just before Bethany, her mother and younger sister left for treatment in Edmonton.
He spent three hours in his lawyer's office Thursday exploring legal avenues in a bid to see his dying daughter.

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Continuing story:
Bethany's battle rages a year after her death -Parents fight for custody of little sister Bethany made headlines in Canada after refusing to undergo blood transfusions and died of acute myeloid leukemia. Bethany's father claims the Watchtower Society and his wife played a major role in her death. He is now fighting for sole custody of his youngest daughter who lives with her mother and is also a Jehovah's Witness. (added 07/26/2003)

Irreconcilable beliefs shattered family -Parents’ clash over transfusions led to divorce A bitter clash between religious beliefs and medical treatment led to the ultimate breakup and bankruptcy of a Calgary family, a judge has concluded in the parents’ divorce action. (added 11/20/2003)

Previous story:
Judge orders teen continue transfusions Lawyers for a 16-year-old girl, and her mother requested a stay preventing doctors from administering transfusions against her will. But the judge ordered a transfusion. The girl's father is also a Jehovah's Witness, but after reviewing Scriptures now believes there's nothing wrong with blood transfusions and favours the treatments to keep his daughter alive (added 02/22/2002).

Father shunned by family for defying faith to save child
The father of this girl is shunned by the Jehovah's Witnesses he once embraced since defying his faith by agreeing to blood transfusions for his 16-year-old leukemia-stricken daughter.
(added 03/11/2002)

Teen's transfusions must continue: Court
The Alberta Court of Appeal ruled that a young Jehovah's Witness from Calgary will have to continue getting blood transfusions. The 16-year-old girl, who suffers from leukemia, is not mature enough to make a decision that's crucial to her treatment, the high court said in upholding earlier rulings by lower courts.
(added 04/27/2002)

Dying teen leaves Canada for treatment
The father of a teenaged leukemia patient who fought against blood transfusions for religious reasons is upset that his wife has taken their daughter out of the country to a secret location where she'll begin alternative treatments.
(added 07/22/2002)

Jehovah's Witness teen happy to be 17 years old A Canadian girl is undergoing alternative chemotherapy treatment at an undisclosed location in North America. She made headlines earlier this year when she refused to receive blood transfusions. Her battle has torn her family apart. Her parents are now embroiled in divorce proceedings, split over Mia's refusal to undergo blood transfusions. (added 08/21/2002)