I'm impressed with the guy for taking a stand. Many of the folks involved in Terri's case in the past seemed to believe "Let George do it," meaning George Felos or George W. Greer.
I hope officials and newscasters will pay attention to Pearse.
Was Bruce Boyer the judge who was overseeing the case, when Pearse was involved, or was George Greer the Judge?
Courts to choose victor in battle over woman's life
Ironically, at the beginning of the case in 1998, it was Felos who requested an independent guardian for Terri Schiavo.Attorney Richard Pearse was appointed, and he issued a report to Judge Bruce Boyer, who then was handling the case. In the report, Pearse said Michael Schiavo was not a credible witness to his wife's end-of-life wishes because he waited several years before coming forward with the claim that she wanted to die. Pearse also noted that Michael Schiavo would benefit financially from her death and be able to move on with his life.
After the report was issued, Felos attacked it and Pearse, and asked that Pearse be removed. Boyer complied.
Boyer never replaced Pearse. And Pearse said he believes a major opportunity was missed because Terri Schiavo has not had her own lawyer in the five years of litigation that have followed. "One of the interesting and ironic aspects of this case is that all of the parties have portrayed themselves as representing her interests," he said. "It's always desirable that a person in Terri's position have an independent representative who has no particular interest in the case other than Terri."
Anderson, who began representing the Schindlers in 2001, said the failure to replace Pearse has hindered the parents' case because Michael Schiavo, as Terri's legal guardian, controls her medical care and even her visitors.
Thank you, but I find only that ONE original source - chicago tribune, that says it was BOYER who appointed (and more importantly FIRED) the GAL attorney Pearse.
I can also find sources that say it was probate judge Patrick Caddell who appointed Pearse.
But there seem to be a much greater number of sources that say it was Greer that fired Pearse on or about Jan 26, 2000.
This one in the St. Petersburg Times says:
"The trial will resume today, but Greer will not make a decision immediately." ... and ...
"Felos will argue today that Pearse is biased and should not have been appointed because he personally is opposed to feeding tubes being removed."
That article, Parents Say Daughter Understands, also includes a nice photo of Terri before her, ahh, err, 'accident', and another photo of the Golliath-sized Michael towering over his female attorney: Constance Felos.