Lawyer Says Mother of N.Y. Teen 'Too Meek' to Stop Church Members From Beating Son to Death

The lawyer of a New York mother charged with manslaughter for beating her 19-year-old son to death in a bizarre church "counseling" session has argued that his client was too "meek" to stop her son from losing his life at the hands of five other congregants.

Deborah Leonard, along with her husband Bruce Leonard, were arrested this week in connection with the beating death of their 19-year-old son Lucas and the injury of their 17-year-old son Christopher.

Authorities of New Hartford, New York say that the parents reportedly participated in a "counseling session" at their church, the World of Life church, on Sunday night that was angled at getting their teenage sons to confess their sins and repent.

Officials say the parents, the boys' older sister and three other congregants viciously beat Lucas and Christopher, with Lucas eventually dying of blunt force trauma.

Devin Garramone, lawyer for the mother, claims that his client never intended for her son to lose his life, instead arguing that she was too "meek" to stand up to other members of the church and stop them from physically beating her child.

"It looks like she went along with it, and it spun out of control," he told the Associated Press. "This woman is so meek and timid, she didn't have the temerity to stand up to them and say, 'You're not punishing my kid. You're not doing this.'"

Residents of New Hartford have told local media outlets that the World of Life church, which claims to be of Christian denomination, resembles more of a cult than an actual church.