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Two parents in Minnesota could face jail after allegedly trying to save their sick seven-year-old son's life by praying rather than calling 911.

Timothy and Sarah Johnson, of Plymouth, have been charged with child neglect over the death of their adopted son Seth in March 2015 after he came down with pancreatitis and acute sepsis.

The couple allegedly opted to treat their son themselves because they had “issues going to doctors” and were concerned about the medications they would prescribe, the New York Post reported.

They admitted to police that Seth's behaviour had altered and he wasn’t sleeping but refused to take him to a doctor before his death, it is claimed.

Prosecutors said the couple had left the boy in the care of his 16-year-old brother just before his death while they went away for the weekend.

When they returned, they allegedly found Seth collapsed on the floor but decided to pray for his recovery rather than seek medical attention.

The next morning, they found him passed out and covered in vomit, police said. He was later pronounced dead by paramedics.

Hennepin County Attorney, Mike Freeman, said: “The parents admitted to police that his behaviour had changed, that he wasn’t sleeping, was throwing himself down stairs and was taking hours to eat.

"Yet, they refused to do what most parents would have done and take him to a doctor,”