Neumann's parents said they didn't know she had diabetes and didn't take her to a doctor. Instead they prayed for her healing. The girl was suffering symptoms like nausea, vomiting, excessive thirst, loss of appetite and weakness.
Diabetic ketoacidosis prevents the body from absorbing nutrients but the common course of medical treatment for the disease involves injections of insulin and intravenous fluids. The girl looked abnormally lean.
Kara's parents, Dale and Leilani Neumann told the police their daughter's death occurred because "apparently they didn't have enough faith." They were convinced that praying would help Kara get rid of her illness.
Dale and Leilani Neumann moved there from California two years ago and run a popular coffee shop. They said Kara's last visit to a doctor was when she was 3 to get some shots.
The case is under investigating by the local police who could forward their results to the Marathon County district attorney's office. The Marathon County Department of Social Services has also launched an investigation.
Neumanns' three other children - ages 13, 14 and 17 - were being interviewed by Social Services and law enforcement and were being checked by a physician.
Police first came to know about the dying girl's condition on Sunday at 2:33 p.m. after a call from a family relative who lived in California. The relative notified authorities "that the child was ill, and due to religious reasons the family would not take the child to the hospital."
After the officers set off to the home, 911 received a second call from the family's residence informing police that the girl was not breathing and did not have a pulse.
As the police reached the house they found the girl in a family-room area lying on a futon mattress on the floor and her parents were praying over her. The girl was pronounced dead at St. Clare's Hospital, Autopsy results showed that she had diabetic ketoacidosis.
The girl has three siblings still living in the home. So far, police find no reason to remove them.
