Parents of dead baby discharged

Catherine and David Tribble. Picture / Brett Phibbs

A religious couple whose baby died after they failed to get him medical treatment were convicted and discharged without penalty in the High Court at Whangarei today.

A jury last month found Catherine and David Tribble of Northland failed to provide their son Caleb with necessaries of life. The jury cleared the couple of manslaughter.

Judge Geoffrey Venning said today he accepted that the couple would have taken the child to a doctor if they had realised how ill he was.

He said the offending was at the "very lowest end of the spectrum".

There was crying when the sentence was announced, and relieved family and supporters hugged each other.

The Tribbles were charged after Caleb, one of eight children, died on December 5, 2003.

He had a reflux condition that led to a urinary infection and ultimately to fatal blood poisoning.

Police said the parents failed to provide the necessaries of life by failing to take him to a doctor or hospital.

The trial was told they instead prayed for him to get better.

After today's sentencing, Mrs Tribble said: "We left our eight children  this morning not knowing when we were going to see them again."

She said the decision to discharge them was a "huge relief".

- additional reporting Newstalk ZB