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Boy has forgotten mother's nameBy Emanuella Grinberg  Lamoy and Joseph Andressohn listen to opening statements in their manslaughter trial. MIAMI, Florida (Court TV) -- A couple on trial for starving their daughter to death with a strict vegan diet held each other and fought back tears as their oldest son told a Miami jury that he has forgotten his mother's name. "I can remember a little, parts," 9-year-old Yahshawa Andressohn said in court Wednesday of his former life with biological parents Lamoy and Joseph Andressohn. The boy and his siblings were taken from the parents in May 2003. The couple is standing trial for the death of their 6-month-old daughter, Woyah, and additional counts of endangering their four other children. After a brief competency hearing and against defense objections, the thin but upbeat child testified via close-circuit camera from a couch in Judge Stanton Blake's chambers. His parents watched the screen intently, at times beaming with pride at the articulate son who resembled them both, and occasionally fighting back tears. Following Woyah's death on May 15, 2003, Yahshawah, his brother Mykahyah and two younger sisters were placed in the care of Joseph Andressohn's sister, Mary, whom the children now call 'Mom.' Yahshawah testified that he loved his "new" mother, who feeds him his favorite meals of tacos and roasted potatoes, in stark contrast to his biological parents' "living foods" vegan diet of raw vegetables, fruits and wheatgrass. The third-grade student testified that the meals often left him hungry, but said he did not complain to his parents for fear of punishment. He grew quiet as questioning turned to his dead sister, who weighed less than seven pounds when paramedics found her in respiratory arrest at the Andressohn home. A few weeks later, a medical examiner classified the cause of death as "accidental malnutrition," due to insufficient diet. Fidgeting in his seat, Yahshawah said he loved Lamoy Andressohn "three-quarters" as much as before after the death of his sister. "All I know is they killed my little baby sister by accident," Yahshawah testified, referring to the defendants. "They gave us raw food but they didn't know my little sister would die from that." Yahshawah was evasive when asked who told him that his sister had died from the raw-food diet or that his parents were in jail. "I wanted to visit them," he testified. "My aunt told me no because I may go in jail." Mykahyah, 7, offered brief testimony echoing his brother's statements about the Andressohns' lifestyle and his younger sister. "She's dead. They gave her too much raw food," the second-grader testified, clutching one of the judge's golf clubs. He also described the wheatgrass enemas the couple administered instead of traditional medical care. All the children were born in the Andressohn home. Outside court, Joseph Andressohn was subdued about the near-encounter with his sons. "It was wonderful to see my children. It's been a little over two and a half years. They looked good," he said. "But my whole family is still divided." He suggested that the children's guardian had tried to erase their memories of the biological parents. "Whenever Mom and Dad came up, it sounds like the children's guardian ordered them to change the subject, so they eventually gave up," he said. "What struck me the most was he didn't remember us and didn't know my wife's name ... for anyone who has children, look at your child and think about what if that happened to your child." Joseph and Lamoy Andressohn each face 30 years for aggravated manslaughter and 20 years on four counts of child endangerment if convicted. 
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