Elizabeth Struhs’ child protection case not ‘prioritised’ due to high workload, inquest hears
An inquest into the death of eight-year-old Elizabeth Struhs revealed that child protection services failed to prioritize her case due to high workloads. The child died after her parents denied her insulin for type 1 diabetes based on religious beliefs.
Why it matters
It raises serious questions about systemic failures in child welfare agencies and the balance between religious freedom and child safety.
Elizabeth Struhs, eight, died in 2022 after being denied insulin by her religious parents. Photograph: BBC Elizabeth Struhs, eight, died in 2022 after being denied insulin by her religious parents. Photograph: BBC Queensland Elizabeth Struhs’ child protection case not ‘prioritised’ due to high workload, inquest hears Eight-year-old Queensland girl died in 2022 after being denied insulin by her religious parents
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Prefer the Guardian on Google Elizabeth Struhs’ child protection case was not “prioritised” or worked intensively because the staff member assigned to her case was “very busy”, a coroner has heard.
The Queensland coroner’s court also heard the case worker may have been “overly influenced” by the presentation of Struhs’ “upper class home”, putting cases believed to involve a more immediate risk ahead of Elizabeth’s.
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