Coroner Warns ‘Lack of Curiosity’ About Family’s Beliefs Missed Chance to Save Elizabeth Struhs
The coroner investigating the death of eight-year-old Elizabeth Struhs is weighing potential recommendations from Victoria’s cults inquiry, warning that a pervasive “lack of curiosity” regarding her family’s religious convictions represented a significant missed opportunity to save her life.
Elizabeth died on January 7, 2022, from diabetic ketoacidosis after her father stopped administering insulin required to treat her type 1 diabetes. Her family and fellow adherents of a religious sect known locally as the “saints” practiced an extreme form of Christianity that rejected medical intervention for illnesses. Following her death, members of the group gathered around her body, singing and praying for her resurrection.
Before her death, the young girl had drawn the attention of multiple government agencies following a 2019 hospitalization for diabetic ketoacidosis. On that occasion, she had become gravely ill because her parents delayed seeking professional medical care, resulting in both parents later being convicted of child neglect.
During the seventh day of the ongoing inquest, Coroner Ainslie Kirkegaard examined how various officials handled the case. Evidence previously presented to the inquiry indicated that Elizabeth’s mother, Kerrie Struhs, openly shared her extreme views with police, healthcare workers, teachers, parole officers, and child safety personnel, even asserting that she would repeat her actions. These beliefs were also discussed during a formal interagency case management meeting involving the suspected child abuse and neglect team.
Despite these repeated disclosures, the coroner noted that officials largely accepted the mother’s assertions without probing deeper into their origins or implications. Kirkegaard remarked on the striking acceptance of the mother’s extraordinary beliefs and the resulting missed opportunity to identify broader influences affecting the children within the household.
When questioned by the coroner, multiple witnesses testified that they lacked curiosity about the foundations of Kerrie’s beliefs, focusing instead only on whether those views directly threatened her daughter rather than investigating where the ideology came from. One child safety officer acknowledged that even though she felt a degree of curiosity, she did not take specific action, conceding it was a missed opportunity to safeguard Elizabeth. Ultimately, child safety authorities had classified Kerrie’s church group as a source of support for her. Last year, all 14 adult members of the Saints were convicted of Elizabeth’s manslaughter.
As the proceedings continued, Coroner Kirkegaard heard testimony from senior officials representing the Queensland Police Service, the Queensland Department of Education, and the state health department. The coroner inquired about findings from Victoria’s recent inquiry into the recruitment tactics and societal impacts of cults and fringe groups, considering whether similar policy frameworks might be suitable for Queensland.
Victoria’s inquiry had recommended establishing a new criminal offense analogous to coercive control laws to address behaviors within organized groups and cults. A senior police officer testified that while Victoria’s findings offered relevant insights, they could not be directly transplanted into Queensland law without careful evaluation. The officer emphasized the complexity of balancing child protection with religious freedoms, noting the challenge of determining when parental reliance on alternative medicine crosses the threshold into statutory intervention.
Addressing institutional adaptations, the senior officer informed the court that Queensland police recently introduced a dedicated reporting mechanism and crime classification system in June to track concerning ideologies. This new classification expands upon an existing sovereign citizen tracking flag within the QPrime database, enabling authorities to flag individuals associated with broader ideologies of concern, including religious, racist, and anti-government beliefs.
Legal restrictions prevent the identification of witnesses involved in the proceedings. The inquest remains ongoing.
