Michigan Mother Sentenced to Life for Fatal Neglect of Son’s Treatable Cancer

A 43-year-old Michigan woman, Elizabeth Dubois, faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole following the 2019 death of her 19-year-old son, Austin Raymond. A Lapeer County jury convicted Dubois of felony murder and first-degree child abuse earlier this year after evidence revealed she systematically denied her son medical care for a rare, malignant bone cancer. Despite the teenager’s visible physical decline, which included a large growth on his neck and an inability to consume solid food, Dubois repeatedly insisted that he was fine and ignored his desperate pleas for professional help.

The court heard testimony detailing how the victim’s condition deteriorated over several years while his mother actively obstructed medical intervention. Although relatives and social services eventually intervened to secure a diagnosis of chordoma, the delay proved fatal. Prosecutors argued that the cancer was highly treatable in its early stages, but the lack of timely care allowed the disease to progress until it claimed the young man's life. At the time of his death, Raymond weighed only 83 pounds. Judge Michael Nolan denied a defense motion to set aside the verdict, ensuring that Dubois will remain incarcerated for her role in the preventable tragedy.