‘They believed God would raise her from the dead’
By Cloe Read
Jason Richard Struhs woke to the sound of his young daughter’s blood glucose monitor beeping as she began to check her levels, and he rushed downstairs to stop her.
Days later, Elizabeth Struhs, 8, was dead. Her body was then left on a mattress on the floor of their Toowoomba home as her father’s religious group sang and prayed around her.
When paramedics were finally called to the house 36 hours later, they saw Elizabeth’s body partially face down, with a blanket covering parts of her.
Elizabeth Rose Struhs, 8, died on a mattress in her family’s Queensland home.Credit: Nine News
This would form part of the evidence to be put forward in Brisbane’s Supreme Court, Crown prosecutor Caroline Marco said on the second day of the trial of Mr Struhs and 13 other members of fringe religious group “the Saints” charged with killing Elizabeth.
The girl, a type-1 diabetic, who had just finished year 3, died in January 2022, weeks after her mother, Kerrie Elizabeth Struhs, was released from prison.
The Saints regularly sought advice and guidance from their leader, Brendan Luke Stevens, who is charged with murder.
The Saints members and charges laid
- Jason Richard Struhs, 52, Elizabeth’s father - Murder charge
- Brendan Luke Stevens, 62, the congregation leader - Murder charge
- Kerrie Elizabeth Struhs, 49, Elizabeth’s mother - Manslaughter charge
- Zachary Alan Struhs, 21, Elizabeth’s brother - Manslaughter charge
- Loretta Mary Stevens, 67 - Manslaughter charge
- Therese Maria Stevens, 37 - Manslaughter charge
- Andrea Louise Stevens, 34 - Manslaughter charge
- Acacia Naree Stevens, 31 - Manslaughter charge
- Camellia Claire Stevens, 28 - Manslaughter charge
- Alexander Francis Stevens, 26 - Manslaughter charge
- Sebastian James Stevens, 23 - Manslaughter charge
- Keita Courtney Martin, 22 - Manslaughter charge
- Lachlan Stuart Schoenfisch, 34 - Manslaughter charge
- Samantha Emily Schoenfisch, 26 - Manslaughter charge
Ms Struhs had been a member of the congregation for 17 years, but her husband Jason had been staunchly opposed, and only joined four months before Elizabeth’s death, the court heard.
On Thursday, the prosecution said that in the days before Elizabeth died, Mr Struhs had declared he would stop giving her insulin. The congregation had for months sought to get Mr Struhs to join and denounce medical intervention, the court heard.
Mr Struhs later told police he had made the decision to withdraw her insulin, and did not want anything changing his mind, Marco said.
The court was told that he “did not need to worry” if he did not know the monitor’s reading.
On January 3, Mr Struhs said Elizabeth had already checked her levels, despite him rushing to stop her, and she told him it was “down to five, which was pretty much impossible to come down 18 units without an injection”, Marco said.
The court heard Mr Struhs believed this to be a sign from God.
Police footage of the Toowoomba home after members of the congregation were arrested. Credit: Queensland Police Service
Photos of Elizabeth in her final days displayed to the trial showed the girl lying on a mattress on the floor of her home, with members of the congregation around her. The court heard they would take shifts to care for her, singing and praying, with some of them moving their beds to be around her.
Mr Struhs later told police his daughter was “slowly slipping away”. Ms Struhs said she knew Elizabeth was very sick, describing how the girl could not talk and could only motion with her hand for water.
“If God hadn’t healed her, and she passes away I knew what would happen. I would be judged in a man’s world and told I killed my daughter. I know the law.”
Jason Struhs’ statement to police
About 5.30am on January 7, Mr Struhs woke to the sound of some of the Stevens family praying happily and loudly.
“Mr Struhs ran downstairs as he thought it was a sign his daughter had been healed, and started praying with them. Unfortunately, however, Elizabeth had passed away,” Marco said.
Members of the group who were present at the home texted the others to get to the Struhs house to pray because Elizabeth was not breathing, but there would be a “victory very soon”, and that “God can do anything”.
Marco said all of the congregation arrived at the home to “gather and pray for the rising of Elizabeth”.
“They believed that following Elizabeth’s passing that God would raise her from the dead so that she could walk amongst them again in this worldly existence.”
Crown prosecutor Caroline Marco
Mr Struhs called the authorities, telling the congregation, “even though God would still raise Elizabeth” they could not have a “corpse in the home” or “leave her body there forever”.
When authorities eventually arrived at the home, detectives reported hearing singing inside, Marco said.
The prosecutor read several text messages and letters between the group in the weeks leading up to Elizabeth’s death. Listening to their own words read out in court on Thursday, some of them burst out laughing.
Marco said Mr Stevens knew the hold he held over the members of the Saints.
She said the court would see a video of Mr Struhs being baptised, in which Mr Stevens was speaking in tongues. The court heard that once Mr Struhs converted, he too could speak in tongues but he was still not convinced Elizabeth would be healed.
She said one of the accused, Samantha Emily Schoenfisch, 26, who is charged with manslaughter, spoke with her mother after Elizabeth’s death.
The mother said Schoenfisch was “elated” when she explained she had been busy because Elizabeth had stopped breathing and her congregation had been praying for her to be raised, Marco said.
The court heard Schoenfisch explained to her mother that the congregation had to call the authorities to take the girl’s body, but that “must be because God wants more people to see her rise”.
The trial before Justice Martin Burns continues.