Debi's Sentencing

My step-mother, Deborah Wright Leonard was sentenced on February 6, 2017, to 5 years in New York state prison. Debi was the first to take a plea deal, which happened relatively early in the case--Dec. 2, 2015. The authentic Debi came forward for a brief period following her arrest and incarceration. When she was asked by Judge Michael Dwyer and the Oneida County District Attorney what the motivation was for the beatings of my brothers, she responded that Lucas had expressed a desire to leave Word of Life Church and had in fact attended a different church the previous August. ...He attended church with me. That was a big no-no, and Debi knew that. She told the judge that she was concerned about what would happen if Tiffanie Irwin found out. When I went to visit Debi in the Oneida County Correctional Facility, she revealed that she thought I had gone behind her and my father's backs to convince Luke to come with me to church. She was quite surprised to learn that Luke was the one who contacted me about coming to my church.

Before long, Debi was reined in once again, her loyalty to the Irwins was restored, and her cult identity resurfaced to dominate her behavior and thought processes. The prosecution called her as a witness to testify during Sarah Ferguson's bench trial, yet, despite her agreement to cooperate as part of her plea deal, her stories from the witness stand during her daughter's trial did not match the accounts she gave at Grand Jury.

Debi's statement at her sentencing began with platitudes of remorse for the trouble that she had put her church family through, adding an admonition to my father--her husband--that they "should have done better" in getting help for Lucas and Christopher. One might give the benefit of the doubt here and think she meant help in terms of medical attention for the boys' physical injuries. However, it was very plain from her tone and context that she meant help in terms of their alleged sins. Debi spoke even more fiercely for the Irwins as her statement continued, even going so far as to question the severity of her son's injuries--the son who refused to see her, Christopher. She accused Mr. McNamara of tricking her into accepting the plea deal by telling her he would see what he could do about her request to see Christopher. Somehow Debi didn't seem to realize that Christopher was choosing not to see her.

She continued, directing her comments to me, "Kristel, I love you but you never accepted my family or my marriage to your dad. You're exploiting the death of my son for your own gain and I find that repulsive. You had no relationship with my children; you hardly recognized them at church..." As I sat in the gallery listening to these words, I bristled. Nothing of what she stated was true. Debi never asked me if I was being paid. She assumed some fabricated story to be true. And still, 2 1/2 years later, I have received no monetary recompense for the speaking out I have done. I have had zero material gains from this tragedy; rather, I have invested vast amounts in travel time and cost to do what I have done. Any lack of relationship with my siblings is a direct consequence of the Irwins' teaching, declaring that even among family, there was to be no socialization. The continued lack of relationship is still because of the Irwins--their lies to Debi that I am doing wrong, that I am only seeking attention, and cannot be trusted. Then Debi has fed these lies to my youngest brother and sister, informing them that she wants me to have nothing to do with them. So, they refuse to see me.

The statement below was submitted to the Probation Department, and I was ready to present it in court on the day of Debi's sentencing--February 6, 2017. My opportunity was missed, however, as perhaps Mr. McNamara did not realize I had a statement to give. Maybe my silence was more notable anyway, since three of us spoke that day on behalf of my father, while no one said anything regarding Debi.

I have agonized over the right words to use in this statement… Debi married my father in 1992 after meeting a few years prior at Word of Life and becoming friends. I would say that Debi and I were friends as far as the step-parent relationship goes, but we were not really close.  Since I left Word of Life in July 2014, and especially since the tragedy of October 11-12, 2015, there has been a certain rift between Debi and me, which is clearly defined as loyalty to the Irwins. Her plea deal was for a sentence of 5 years in state prison in return for her cooperation and testimony in future trials. She did not hold up her end of the deal, even in the one trial where she was given the chance. Debi’s sentence should match my father Bruce Leonard’s. So either hers should be increased or his decreased.

Like everyone else who attended Word of Life for any significant length of time, especially from early in its history, Debi was under the control of the Irwins –the motivation being largely due to their teaching that loyalty to them was the way to be loyal to God. Like everyone else, she was labeled with certain sins that were allegedly preventing her from hearing from God for herself. For some reason, she was particularly targeted by the leadership as being especially sinful. In typical cult fashion to subject followers to isolation, the leadership placed Debi on church discipline for several years, which meant that no one except the church leadership and her immediate family could spend time with her and talk with her. However, Debi likes people, and she found ways to have friends outside Word of Life—a luxury that most members, especially the women, did not have, as we did not even have friendly associations with one another inside the church, and outsiders were seen as dangerous. Anyway, I wonder if the Irwins saw Debi’s outside friendships as a threat, a practice to be fully halted, and that is why she was so harshly treated by them. Regardless of what the Irwins considered as their justification to be cruel to Debi, the fact remains that they were. And despite their cruel treatment, Debi maintains the loyalty that their skillful mind control secured for them.

Debi, my brother--your son--has been beaten to death, ripped from you. The Irwins are not your friends. They are not God. Friends do not hold one another mentally and emotionally hostage in an attempt to coerce obedience from you. Mourn the son they stole from you, the life that you birthed. Your son—my brother—is my hero. Continued loyalty to these people is delusional. Wake up.

Debi’s fault in this case lies not in smacking her sons a few times, but rather in believing what Tiffanie said beyond any sense of reason. Tiffanie put herself in the place of God, and Debi was entrenched in believing that Tiffanie was God’s representative on Earth. Even though nothing made sense, Debi had long been trained not to trust her own senses or perceptions via another cult tactic--gaslighting. She trusted Tiffanie, Traci, Joseph, Linda, David, and Daniel. She believed that they loved her and her family.

One of the saddest aspects of this case to me is that Debi is still not being afforded the opportunity to grieve properly for her son, Lucas Benjamin, or for all the rest that is lost. The family is broken, shattered, divided. Debi seems to be unaware that loyalty to the Irwins is the impetus behind the devastation. She still believes and continues to perpetuate the lies that Tiffanie conceived, implanted, and acted upon. At this point, Debi is being morally irresponsible, reprehensible even,  in maintaining loyalty to the Irwins and those that support them, especially after they facilitated and assisted in beating the life out of her son.

If Debi can be kept from having contact with Tiffanie and Traci Irwin and those who support them still, she has a much better chance at breaking free of the undue influence of the destructive cult at Word of Life.