A teacher couple has been jailed after their 12-year-old son died from undiagnosed diabetes, despite showing severe symptoms hours before his death.
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Tamara Thomas, 46, and Damion Thomas, 48, failed to seek urgent medical help for their son Joshua after he became critically ill at their home in Kings Heath, Birmingham, on December 9, 2022. Joshua later died at Birmingham Children's Hospital from untreated Type 1 diabetes, which had led to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a life-threatening condition, the Daily Mail reported.
Passing sentence, Mrs Justice Cutts described the boy's death as "entirely preventable" and said he could have survived had emergency medical assistance been sought sooner.
The court heard Joshua had been unwell for several days and had shown symptoms including excessive thirst and frequent urination in the week before his death. At about 4am on December 9, he became so weak that he could not walk to the bathroom without help.
Damion assisted him and believed he might need hospital treatment later that day. Tamara also noticed how much weight her son had lost. However, neither parent called an ambulance or sought urgent medical help.
The judge said the couple was negligent in failing to obtain medical assistance when Joshua's condition had clearly become an emergency. She told the court that if treatment had been provided at that stage, his death could have been avoided.
After leaving for work at about 7.30am, Damion returned home later that day. Joshua remained seriously ill and had to be helped downstairs by one of his siblings. Tamara eventually called 999 at 12.43pm, but Joshua never regained consciousness and died in hospital in the early hours of the following day.
Justice Cutts said the couple were loving and devoted parents who cared deeply for their children, but criticised what she described as a belief that they knew best and their reluctance to seek help from professionals.
"You didn't seek help when it was obviously needed," she said. "That attitude had tragic consequences."
The judge also noted that Damion had himself been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2018 and was therefore familiar with the condition and its symptoms.
Tamara was convicted of gross negligence manslaughter and sentenced to three years and nine months in prison. Damion was convicted of child cruelty and jailed for two years and nine months.
