Professor Appointed to Probe Schiavo Case

Guardian Unlimited ^ | Nov 1, 2003 | Vickie Chachere

[Future Useless Eater]

Professor Appointed to Probe Schiavo Case

Saturday November 1, 2003 1:01 AM

By VICKIE CHACHERE
Associated Press Writer

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - A judge appointed a University of South Florida professor on Friday to independently investigate the case of a severely brain-damaged woman at the center of a right-to-die battle.

Jay Wolfson, an expert on health care financing, will report to Gov. Jeb Bush and recommend whether the stay the governor enacted to keep Terri Schiavo alive should be allowed to remain.

Schiavo suffered severe brain damage when her heart stopped due to a chemical imbalance and has been in a persistent vegetative state for more than a decade. Doctors have said there is no hope for her recovery.

Her husband, Michael Schiavo, has fought to have her feeding tube removed, saying his wife did not want to be kept alive artificially.

Terri Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, dispute that claim and have fought to keep their daughter alive, saying they believe she could be rehabilitated.

Terri Schiavo's feeding tube was removed for six days in October before the Florida Legislature and Gov. Jeb Bush enacted a special law to have it reinserted. The law also required a guardian to be appointed.

George Felos, the attorney for Michael Schiavo, and the American Civil Liberties Union filed briefs this week challenging the constitutionality of the governor's action. The state is expected to respond on Monday.

The judge said that if the law is found to be unconstitutional, Wolfson is to cease his work.

The Schindlers had objected to Wolfson's appointment, claiming comments he made to a television station indicated he was biased against the newly enacted law. The judge said he found no evidence of bias.

Wolfson did not return calls seeking comment.

The judge ordered Wolfson to report to the governor in 30 days, but said the deadline could be extended if needed.

[Mamzelle]

What is the latest on Terri? Have not read anything on it the last couple of days.

[Diva Betsy Ross]

I am not sure what is going on with the trolls, perhaps mods are keeping them around for pets.

These trolls, on every Terri thread ,are organized and all fight the same exact way. I would warn everyone to be very careful of them, not only are they passive agressive and illogical, they have really bad grammer most of the time.... I think it is two or three people switching screen neames, that is why there is a constant message, but different ways in which each screen name communicates, then it switches back again.

I have detected one very angry person who know a great deal about the inner working of the legal case, one sidekick who is not very smart or who has very good grammer, who parots ther leader and works really hard to have us believe Felos is a jerk, but very bright, and one Southern Belle wanna be.

They all insist that Terri had an eating disorder and that is what put her in this condition. They all want us to stop fighting, they all show contempt for the people they say they are supporting, and with whom they fight side by side ,for Terri's BEST interest. ( I think they fight for her best interest too, we just ahve very different ideas of wht her best interest is.) Who could this "dream team" be. Lets ignore them, but do important stuff by freepmail or e-mail for awhile.

[Theodore R.]

Even if your analysis of Terri's "dead" brain is correct, and it may well be correct, that to me is not justification for starvation and dehydration of an innocent person on orders from one blind circuit judge in a corrupt FL judiciary.

[TigersEye]

GREAT HOMEPAGE

Thanks! You made me look, I forgot what I had there.

[TigersEye]

Nice homepage yourself. Thank you for your service and sacrifices for our country!

[TigersEye]

It should be noted that Hammesfahr was not nominated by his peers or anyone involved in medicine, but by Mike Billerakis(sp.) his congressman- (no doubt in return for a handsome campaign contribution).

I see you don't mind indulging in baseless accusations.

[daylate-dollarshort]

Yes- it does appear we are of like minds.

[TigersEye]

I didn't make a baseless accusation I made a mistatement and admitted it. My statement didn't attack anyone's character, yours did.

[floriduh voter]

The best thing is to IGNORE disruptors. If we complain too much, it won't help Terri. FR is doing outstanding work with PUBLIC AWARENESS and WORKING WITH THE MEDIA and rallying people to join terrisfight.org.

The bad apples would like to spoil the whole bunch. Every once in awhile, just do an updated post stating:

FRIENDS OF TERRI - PLEASE IGNORE DISRUPTORS. THEY'RE TRYING TO BAIT YOU. DON'T FALL FOR IT. AND, REMEMBER LOOSE LIPS SINK SHIPS....

Just copy and paste that one wherever you see trouble. FV

[Krodg]

Dr. William Maxfield, a Tampa radiologist, agreed that Terri is not in a persistent vegetative state, noting her ability to follow commands and her responsiveness, according to the AP. After comparing Terri's 1996 CAT scan to her 2002 scan, Maxfield also testified that Terri's brain tissue appeared more localized and uniform.

"It tells me that the brain tissue on the [2002] study has a more normal appearance," Maxfield testified, adding that hyperbaric oxygen therapy, similar to Hammesfahr's recommendation, could lead to improvement, the AP reported.

http://www.nrlc.org/news/2002/NRL11/shiavo.html

[Republic]

It is Shook's testimony, in your link, that chills me. She actually says that MS did not know what Terri's wishes would be.....this is just so amazing? Why isn't HER statement as valid as MS's-who stands to gain, while she does not? Both are hearsay!

[Future Useless Eater]

>> MS did not know what Terri's wishes would be.....this is just so amazing? Why isn't HER statement as valid as MS's-who stands to gain, while she does not? Both are hearsay!

For THAT matter, why are the (at least TWO) people who
KNEW Terri was wanting a divorce just prior to her 'accident'
ALSO allowed to present their 'hearsay'? Its just as
valid too...

Actually moreso now, since MS has clearly
ended his marriage thru adultery, starting a new family,
and refusing any additional treatment for Terri.

[Krodg]

Attorneys scramble to find woman in Schiavo case

Both sides want to talk with the woman whose comments turned around the case of Terri Schiavo.

By ANITA KUMAR and WILLIAM R. LEVESQUE

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 28, 2001

The woman whose statements prompted a judge to resume feeding Terri Schiavo could not be found Friday by attorneys eager to talk to her.

Attorneys for both Mrs. Schiavo's husband and her parents scrambled to serve Cyndi Shook with a subpoena, forcing her to testify about her accusations that Michael Schiavo committed perjury when he said his wife would not want to be kept alive on life support.

The case, which made it to the U.S. Supreme Court only to be overturned by a Pinellas circuit judge, is expected to continue in full force next week, making it clear that Mrs. Schiavo's fate will not be decided quickly.

Mrs. Schiavo, 37, was fed through a feeding tube to her stomach Thursday night for the first time since being denied food and water for 60 hours.

Shook, a 31-year-old mother of two, spoke out this week when she heard people describing Michael Schiavo as a saint on a local radio show. She said she wanted to set the record straight.

Shook and Michael Schiavo were friends for about 10 months in 1992. In an interview with the St. Petersburg Times, Shook said Schiavo told her he did not know what to do with his wife, who had been in a persistent vegetative state since a 1990 heart attack.

Shook says Schiavo did not know what Mrs. Schiavo would have wanted him to do with her: keep her in a nursing home or move her to her parents' home. But Shook says Schiavo was not talking specifically about whether his wife would have wanted to be on life support.

She asked him what would help him get on with his life. That's when Schiavo said, "How the hell should I know? She was 25 years old and we did not talk about it," she said.

"That's exactly what I remember him saying," Shook said. "It was more of a "I have no earthly idea what to do' kind of statement."

She said she sympathizes with Mrs. Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, but insists that they're grasping at straws and twisting her words when they try to use her words to help keep Mrs. Schiavo alive.

After receiving word of Shook's statement, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Frank Quesada on Thursday ordered doctors to resume feeding Mrs. Schiavo while her parents pursue a lawsuit against the woman's husband. The judge did what the U.S. Supreme Court and four other courts before him refused to do.

George Felos, Schiavo's attorney, said he was considering a number of legal options but had not decided how to fight the Schindlers, or if he should appeal Quesada's decision to the 2nd District Court of Appeal in Lakeland.

"Time is of the essence," Felos said. "Each day that goes by Terri is medically treated in a way she did not want to be."

Within minutes of the 8:30 p.m. order Thursday, doctors resumed feeding her through a tube for the first time since 8 a.m. Tuesday.

The Schindlers, who for years have fought their son-in-law over whether Mrs. Schiavo's feeding tube should be removed, visited their daughter for about 30 minutes Friday afternoon for the first time since the feeding resumed.

"I wouldn't wish this experience on anybody," Schindler said outside Hospice House Woodside in Pinellas Park. "It's been horrible . . . What we're ultimately trying to do is keep Terri alive."

It's unlikely Mrs. Schiavo suffered any permanent damage from the lack of food and water, said Dr. Ronald Schonwetter, head of geriatrics at the University of South Florida College of Medicine.

He said she would likely have become more sleepy -- probably yawning more than usual -- but that she would have easily been able to consume food again, though less than before because her body was not accustomed to being fed.

Mrs. Schiavo has been living in the Hospice House Woodside since last year, when publicity prompted her former nursing home to evict her. Schiavo banned his wife's sister, Suzanne, and brother, Bobby, from the home Thursday after they asked employees there to feed her.

It is the policy of Hospice of the Florida Suncoast to feed patients, even after a feeding tube has been removed, if they are able to eat on their own. The Schindlers want the nursing home to try to feed Mrs. Schiavo but Felos said tests have shown she can't swallow.

Schiavo, a respiratory therapist who lives in Clearwater, could not be reached for comment but Felos said he denies Shook's allegations and questioned why she had not spoken up before.

Schiavo has been engaged to another woman for five years. He and his wife do not have children.

"I can't even express in words how hard this has been," Felos said. "It's heart-wrenching. It's a travesty."

- Times staff writer Mike Brassfield and researcher Cathy Wos contributed to this report.



http://www.sptimes.com/News/042801/TampaBay/Attorneys_scramble_to.shtml

[Lion in Winter]

Travesty thy name is felos!!

[Lion in Winter]

"I can't even express in words how hard this has been," Felos said. "It's heart-wrenching. It's a travesty."

Travesty thy name is felos!!

Heart-wrencing thy name is mike schiavo!

[Future Useless Eater]

If you are interested, I'm open to a private discussion however -

Normally a Lurker - No thank you. As I understand it you were banned by the owner of F.R. from continuing to post on 'Terri threads' for being disruptive. So I don't wish to encourage you by discussing this matter with you in private either.

[walford]

Sources on #6, please. This is the first I saw of any pre- hospitalized Terri saying she was contemplating divorce. This is damning evidence if it can be corroborated.

Working on a paper on this subject for a media class...

[Normally a Lurker]

That is a gross misdescription of just what occurred - something which you and your cohorts seem overly prone to do with a wide range of 'facts'.

Since you have elected to so misdescribe this, following is a copy of the message that led to me deciding to cease discussing the 'Terri topic' at this site:

Why don't you just leave this topic (Terri) and find something else to compalain about?

That was the entire communication I received from Jim Rob prior to my decision to cease posting in the 'save Terri' threads.

I know that you and your co-horts would love to see me banned from here, which is made clear by your tag-team approach to trying to goad me into discussing the :Terri topic' with you.

Aside from the dispatities mentioned above, you got it right.

BTW, if you don't wish "to encourage me" by discussing this with me in private, why have you tried to goad me into discussing it in the public forum? (don't bother to answer)

[PeyersPatches]

I agree with these statements, however what we are talking about in the Terri Schiavo case is the wholesale destruction of the cerebral cortex, not a synapes failure. If you think about the synapsis of the brain as the wiring- elecrtical connections- one can repair the wiring from the power pole to the house, but if the house has burned down the lights will still not go on.

In Terri's case the house has burned down and what is left is nothing but ashes. The dead tissue has atrophied and the volume once occupied by her cerebral cortex has been replaced by spinal fluid. There is no mechanism which will grow or otherwise generate new brain tissue.

---

Are you a neurologist or otherwise have expertise in the field? Also, have you personally examined Terri Schindler's medical records and person? What are your medical credentials and first-hand knowledge of this case? I ask because you are stating information that has been debunked by actual medical experts and you are presenting information as if you are an expert with first hand knowledge. Thanks.

[Lion in Winter]

He is NOT a doctor...he is a TROLL!