An herbalist sentenced to prison after the death of a 13-year-old diabetic boy who he treated

February 26, 2019, 7:10 pm GMT

By Farnoush Amiri

A Los Angeles-registered herbalist convicted of unlicensed practice was sentenced to four months in jail for child abuse in the same case, in connection with the death of a 13-year-old diabetic boy, announced the newspaper. city ​​lawyer.

Timothy Morrow, 84, was found guilty of practicing without a license during a jury trial on February 20 and pleaded no challenge on Monday under the charge of the prosecution. 39; Child-related offenses that could cause serious injury or death, Los Angeles City Attorney. Mike Feuer said in a statement.

Morrow, a self-proclaimed "master herbalist" based in Torrance, Calif., Began treating Edgar Lopez, age 13, for type 1 diabetes in early 2014, ordering the teenager to take herbs at home. place of insulin prescribed by his pediatrician, said the city attorney.

A medical examiner would later determine that Lopez would have survived if he had received appropriate medical care.

The victim's parents claimed that Morrow had gone to their home in the south of Los Angeles in August 2014, after their son became seriously ill and became "semi-comatose" because of complications. to his diabetes.

The herbalist again advised parents to administer the herbs that he was selling and urged them not to give his insulin to Edgar, the parents told prosecutors, according to Feuer's statement .

Edgar had a cardiac arrest soon after and died the next day at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, prosecutors said.

NBC Los Angeles reported that Maria Madrigal, the teenage mother, had told the jury, through a Spanish interpreter, that Morrow had told her "not to trust the" doctors "and that she had the impression of the "absolutely" having brainwashed her.His son supplements the supplements and products that he prescribed to her only after her encounter with Morrow.

Defense attorney Sanford Perliss contradicted the testimony of the teenage mother at the trial, saying that no one had forced parents to withhold insulin.

"Nobody has a gun on Edgar.Nobody has a gun on Edgar's mother.Nobody stole the insulin from this house so that the mother of ### ## ## ### ### ### ### ############################################################### Edgar can not use it, "said Perliss in his final argument, according to NBC Los Angeles. "Edgar's mother wanted to do what Edgar's mother wanted to do."

Perliss told NBC News Tuesday that his client had accepted a plea contract because he was "very old" and that the lawsuit was "difficult" for him. The lawyer claimed that Madrigal gave her son herbs before meeting with his client.

Daniel Lopez, the victim's older brother, told NBC News that the family was not commenting for the moment.

In addition to spending 120 days in a county jail, Morrow was sentenced to 48 months probation, fined $ 5,000 and restitution to the victim's family. It is expected that he will go to prison on March 22nd.

He was officially informed that, if he continued to commit such acts and that these were causing or were leading to the death of another human being, he could be charged with murder, said the office of Feuer.

The court also asked Morrow to remove his YouTube videos, in which he advocated herbal treatment as opposed to traditional medicine. In a video called "Shots, they kill me! In the first part, the herbalist says that vaccinating children is like injecting them with "absolute poison".

"This case highlights the serious health and safety risks associated with taking over medical advice by a unlicensed person and the appropriate training that accompanies it," said Feuer. in a statement released Monday.