The guy was estranged from the wife for five years and was currently going through divorce proceedings.....Divorce seems like a conflict of interest to me.Until it's actually signed and sealed by the court, you're still married and it doesn't matter what's going on. Your spouse has got the control.
You’re right, the spouse does have the control....however, his family went to court and became his guardians (or medical guardians, I guess). The hospital still did what the illegal guardian (the soon to be ex-wife) wanted anyway and took away his hydration and feeding until his parents found out.
The parents had the control; the hospital ignored them.