Sheila O’Leary was found guilty of murdering her son. Image: Alamy
A vegan mother has been found guilty of murdering her 18-month-old son who weighed just 17kg when he died in 2019. Sheila O’Leary, 39, was convicted of first-degree murder after the death of her son who was fed only fruits, vegetables and breast milk. She now faces life behind bars when she is sentenced on July 25. Her son Ezra died in 2019 from complications caused by malnutrition. When she died in September 2019, doctors determined she had not been fed for a week. Sheila’s husband Ryan has also been charged with murder and is awaiting trial. Image: Alamy O’Leary and her husband, who has also been charged with murder and is awaiting trial, called 911 after Ezra stopped breathing. He was pronounced dead by rescuers. Prosecutors at her trial described a child who was emaciated and cried constantly. The couple also had a three-year-old and a five-year-old who were severely malnourished. Their skin was yellow and some suffered from such poor dental hygiene that their teeth were black.
