A 22-year-old Maryland woman yesterday agreed to cooperate in the prosecution of members of a cult accused of causing the death of her two-year-old son – on condition that charges against her be dropped if the child rises from the dead.
Ria Ramkissoon and her son Javon
Ria Ramkissoon’s plea bargain was described by her attorney as unprecedented in American jurisprudence.
According to this report, Baltimore Circuit Court Judge Timothy Doory said that:
If the victim in this case, Javon Thompson, is resurrected – as you still hold some hope he will be – you may withdraw the plea, and the charges will be nolle prossed [withdrawn] against you.
A spokeswoman for the Baltimore state’s attorney’s office said that in recent weeks, as prosecutors and Ramkissoon’s attorney discussed the plea bargain, they made it clear that she could not get out of her obligations if she asserted that Javon returns as anything other than himself.
Margaret Burns said that:
This would need to be a Jesus-like resurrection. It cannot be a reincarnation in another object or animal.
Ramkissoon is the prosecution’s star witness against a 40-year-old Baltimore woman named Queen Antoinette. Prosecutors allege that Queen Antoinette led a small cult, called One Mind Ministries, based in West Baltimore, and that in early 2007, she instructed Ramkissoon and others to deprive Javon of food and water because he didn’t say “amen” before breakfast.
Queen Antoinette has been charged with first-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death, as have three of her alleged followers. Any trial is expected to be at least two months away.
Ramkissoon pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in death. If she testifies truthfully against the other defendants, according to yesterday’s agreement, prosecutors will recommend that she be released from jail, placed on probation, and provided treatment that could include “a process of deprogramming”.
Prosecutors said Queen Antoinette concluded that Javon had developed a “spirit of rebellion” and should not be given food or water for at least two days. Fearing that his mother, Ramkissoon, might “break down and feed the child”, Queen Antoinette ordered that Javon be handed to another group member.
After Javon died, he was placed on a couch while everyone knelt down and prayed. Ramkissoon also danced around her son, prosecutors said. The boy’s body was later moved to a back room.
At one point, two members measured Jason’s body and bought a suitcase. Members believed that if the body could travel with them, it could be resurrected at a later date.
The group members left the suitcase with a man they had befriended. Police eventually discovered it in his shed in Philadelphia.
The Freethinker was founded in 1881 by GW Foote, an outspoken critic of religion. After the publication of 
March 31st, 2009 at 10:47 am
Just look at that little boy. As is so often the case, a helpless and innocent person is the true victim of other peoples ludicrous beliefs. It’s sick, and the thing that makes me truly sick as that those in authority here are humouring these idiots by incorporating their religion into the justice system!! They should be sent for psychiatric evaluation.
March 31st, 2009 at 10:47 am
For fuck’s sake.
This makes me so depressed it’s untrue.
March 31st, 2009 at 11:02 am
I have a better idea, how about crucifying Queen Antoinette and see if she rises after 3 days. If she does, then she is innocent.
It worked in the past with witches, didn’t it?
OK so a dunking stool is slightly less drastic and if they SURVIVED they were guilty, but this is the 21st century, tests have to be brought up to date.
March 31st, 2009 at 12:59 pm
Quote: “After Javon died, he was placed on a couch while everyone knelt down and prayed.”
Effective this praying nonsense isn’t it? Just when the think the religious vermin can stoop no lower, they prove you wrong. I’m shocked.
March 31st, 2009 at 1:21 pm
Surely some member of that cult would have thought “Hang on – this ain’t right”. But no, they just carried on as ‘normal’.
Just what is wrong with these twats?
March 31st, 2009 at 4:15 pm
I thought this seemed like another humorous mad religious believers story when I started reading it. I assumed that the boy had just died of some natural cause or other. But when I read through and found out what had happened I was utterly shocked.
This is sickening and there is no way her mad ramblings about resurrection should be pandered to in any way. If it means the difference between getting the cult leaders and members prosecuted, ok. That needs to happen. But the prosecutors need to come down VERY hard on these people. This is fuckin sick!
As Sarah rightly points out, children, helpless innocent children are ALWAYS the victims of these retarded fuckwits and as newspaniard suggests, maybe the cult members and leaders should be made to suffer, but unlike them, the sane amongst us wouldn’t want to stoop so low as to torture people, unlike them.
remigius
“Surely some member of that cult would have thought “Hang on – this ain’t right”. But no, they just carried on as ‘normal’.
Just what is wrong with these twats?”
Exactly! What age was this little boy? He died because he didn’t say Amen! They knelt down beside the dead boy and prayed. They bought a suitcase and they thought that would help! For fuck sake! Why were none of them able to stand up to this woman and tell her and her mad cult where to go. The mother of the child for instance? What the fuck is wrong with her! He was her child and she let them do this to him for no reason at all.
This is typical of these cults. People let these mental cult leaders do anything they want. David Caresh was shagging everyone’s wife and daughters, even very young girls, and none of them thought to question that.
It shows how weak the minds of believers are. They will accept anything thrown at them regardless of how, ridiculous, sick or evil it is, even allowing their own children to be victims rather than think for themselves.
Sorry for the language but this makes me seethe!!
March 31st, 2009 at 5:41 pm
Sorry to add to the gloom, and it is a hellish case, but brutality feeds on religion and the victims are usually children, often female, and women. Even in the dear old UK (so much more civilised) the mutilation of female babies goes on FGM. This is often carried out, with the support of the mother, and without anaesthetic. Female genital Mutilation is really does not bear thinking about. What does bear thinking about is the relaxed approach in this country to doing something effective about it. Might upset the religious mores of some ethnic minority, I suppose.
March 31st, 2009 at 6:49 pm
I fall more into Dawkins camp every day. Religion is child abuse.
March 31st, 2009 at 7:19 pm
Culturally traditional religions and cults have completely different social dynamics and conflating them makes people less likely to recognize characteristics of cults when they encounter them (like in this case, a leader whose dictates are apparently law for the members.)
March 31st, 2009 at 7:47 pm
While I think these people are complete nuts and should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law; David Koresh and his group were incinerated by the FBI & BATF after a botched attempt at News Head Line grabbing; this was an attempt to generate better press after the Ruby Ridge Incident. Nuts –> probably; needed to be incinerated with another 70-odd folks —> not at all.
March 31st, 2009 at 8:03 pm
On some of the more horrible internet sites, there’s video footage surfaced from africa, of women being set on fire for witchcraft.
It is atrocious – as a huge gang surrounds them, and men kick and stamp and whip them with sticks. When the women attempt to crawl out of the fire, in a ditch by the roadside, they are dragged back in and covered with more twigs and kindling.
I’m presuming these are christians burning witches.
I don’t recommend searching for it – as it can’t be un-watched.
Religion is the ultimate inhuman evil.
March 31st, 2009 at 8:27 pm
Well evolution only works when the progeny of the weak and stupid don’t survive.
March 31st, 2009 at 10:55 pm
This is classical comedy! OMG LOL!
March 31st, 2009 at 10:57 pm
Religion (all religion) is quite clearly the greatest force for evil of all time. More of us need to stand up, not just to say we don’t believe in their nutso religions, but to actively oppose the very concept of religion in all ways possible. I think a good start would be to lobby for an end to the unfair tax privileges that organized religions have. They’ve been skimming off of productive members of society for thousands of years (the real reason behind most religion, if you ask me) and enough is enough.
And to the guy who said that cults are different from traditional religions, I see no difference whatsoever, except the traditional religions have more political clout.
April 1st, 2009 at 12:21 am
Filthy SAVAGES.
April 1st, 2009 at 4:40 am
A truly disgusting story of religious madness taken to the extreme though I cant say it surprises me. I wonder how many incidents like this go undetected and unpunished? There must be many across the world.
Rob, you could do worse than join the National Secular Society ( or your country’s equivalent ) who do a sterling job in the fight against religious privilege. There is always some campaign to get stuck into. Ive been helping out in one that is due for release very shortly and its been a real pleasure to be involved.
April 1st, 2009 at 6:05 am
Having grown up in a freaky, quasi-xtian cult, I am just so depressingly unsurprised by this I can’t even tell you.
April 1st, 2009 at 12:23 pm
Rob,
Totally agree.
Wurble,
“I wonder how many incidents like this go undetected and unpunished? There must be many across the world”
Sad but true.
LOL,
WTF. This is not a funny story! If something had happened to one of the ‘adults’ following this cult, that would be sad but fuck it, they’re supposed to be adults and should know better. But it didn’t. It was, as has already been pointed out, an innocent child who suffered. A child deprived of a chance at life because of some mad deluded barren brained bozo’s.
I was sickened by this and can’t understand anyone finding it funny.
April 3rd, 2009 at 6:16 pm
Isn’t this legal malpractice — participating in a bargain you know to be false?
April 12th, 2009 at 8:11 pm
Cults and religions have one very thing in common: the following of a man (or woman). Why is so hard for human beings to read, get informed, study,…before they give their lives and families to a god-like wanna-be, anti-christ, anti-human hipocrit and delusional full of himself deceiver??? We do not need special, priviledged, super-spiritual humans like you and me for a relationship with God…we need God himself…that’s it! Jesus! No pimps, gurus, mediums etc… But Satan is very good at keeping thirsty souls (that really want to find God), blind and oppressed…Let all this non-sense open our eyes and keep our love ones informed and let’s have mercy on foolish people that blindly follow evil doers…I personally know that evil preys on humans in gory ways like this…Let no one deceive you, all you need for your spirit and the after life is the repentance of your sins, acceptance of Jesus as your Savior and the following of His word in the Bible…nothing else. (You don’t need a third party)….blessings!!!