Judge Lets Parents Challenge Custody of Terri Schiavo

Tampa Bay Online ^ | November 5, 2003 | AP

[sweetliberty]

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) - A state circuit judge Wednesday refused to block an effort by the parents of a brain-damage woman to try to get her husband removed as her legal guardian. Attorneys for Michael Schiavo now have to respond in court to charges in the petition that he withheld proper care and therapy from his wife, Terri Schiavo, and that he has a conflict of interest because he's in a romantic relationship with another woman.

Bob and Mary Schindler, parents of Terri Schiavo, asked Circuit Judge George W. Greer to appoint Terri's brother or sister as guardian instead.

Schiavo had asked for the Schindler's request to be dismissed, but Greer refused.

In the past, Greer has repeatedly affirmed Michael Schiavo's legal right to remove Terri Schiavo's feeding tube and allow her to die, as he says she would have wished.

The guardianship issue is a sidebar to what is likely to be a major legal battle over a hastily passed state law that let Gov. Jeb Bush order the reinsertion of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube Oct. 21.

Michael Schiavo's attorney, with backing by the American Civil Liberties Union, has challenged the constitutionality of the law.

[longtermmemmory]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1015587/posts?page=112#112

He also gave him a roadmap of what he needs to say. Matters that he has certainly ruled on before. Suggests bias or at least the appearance of bias.

see above post for some law.

[sweetliberty]

Thanks, but it wouldn't go to words buried in a post would it? Wouldn't it only search key words or title or poster?

[Krodg]

Whenever a party to any action or proceeding makes and files an affidavit stating that he fears he will not receive a fair trial in the court where the suit is pending on account of the prejudice of the judge of that court against the applicant or in favor of the adverse party, the judge shall proceed no further, but another judge shall be designated in the manner prescribed by the laws of this state for the substitution of judges for the trial of causes in which the presiding judge is disqualified.

I thought the Schindlers filed a motion to disqualify Judge Greer....and Judge Greer denied the motion???

[FR_addict]

One statute referes to others and so forth.
The best I can tell, to be a guardian Michael S. cannot engage in lewd and lascivious behavior as defined below:

Guilt of an Offense Prohibited Under Fla. Stat. §§ 435.03 and 744.474 (12)

(12) Having been found guilty of, regardless of adjudication, or entered a plea of nolo contendere or guilty to, any offense prohibited under s. 435.03 or under any similar statute of another jurisdiction.

798.02 Lewd and lascivious behavior.--If any man and woman, not being married to each other, lewdly and lasciviously associate and cohabit together, or if any man or woman, married or unmarried, engages in open and gross lewdness and lascivious behavior, they shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

[Aliska]

That's the power of it. It searches all text, not just titles and/or keywords.

[Colonel_Flagg]

Thank you very kindly .. I will read and hopefully educate myself. Doesn't look like this is the place for unwashed opinions :)

[FR_addict]

Thanks for posting Kate Adamson's web site. Her story was so powerful.

One other thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is that when O'Reilly asked her how long it took to come back, she said it was only after she received acute therapy.

[FITZ]

There is nothing that says a guardian can't have sexual relations or cohabitate with another person.

But if the whole justification for his being made a guardian is that he is married to the one he has total control over and he's cohabitatin with another woman? Adultery in this case certainly puts the validity of the marriage in question --- and the guardianship of the one he's cheating on.

[longtermmemmory]

Just trying to help, I have not been able to follow the case as closely as I would like.

The statments to "michael" seem a little too directed or directing. It just seemed to me, (and my unsolited opinion) that most recent statements would give grounds for a new motion. I do not intent to be a busybody. Just an FYI.

[FITZ]

Tell the court #1 how you have provided good medical care for her,

I hope they make him prove that every last cent of the $700,000 that was given to provide care for Terri actually went to provide her care ---- I guess he was free to do what he wished with $300,000 ----but if he owes Terri, he needs to pay up. I wonder if stealing from the one you are guardian over is a crime?

[NonValueAdded]

There is nothing that says a guardian can't have sexual relations or cohabitate with another person.

In terms of a direct statement prohibiting sexual relations, you are correct. However, when the person having the relations is the husband AND the guardian, there IS a direct conflict of interest which IS grounds for termination of the guardianship (744.474 (11) to be exact).

Think about it ... is MS's allegance to the ward or his new honey? Now add the fact that MS has a child with his new honey? A blind man could see the conflict.

There are several other reasons in 744.474 as to why the guardianship should be terminated. See http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1006219/posts?page=891#891

I am SO glad that there is another attempt to remove MS as guardian and that Judge Greer will at least consider the evidence this time. I think the fact that there was much discussion over the conflicts of interest when the legislature was considering "Terri's Law" got Greer's attention.

[Aliska]

It should be noted that only two out of the several points listed in the guardianship petition were accepted as requiring response. It would have been better if they had to respond to all of them.

[FITZ]

Step #1 in this process should be the appointment of legal counsel for Terri Schiavo so that divorce proceedings (on the grounds of persistent and open marital infidelity) can be initiated against Michael.

Yes --- there are many grounds for ending that marriage ---- so it should be be ended and the guardianship ended. I wonder what kinds of crimes he may have committed by not spending the money won in the lawsuit for her care? Are there legal limitations on how much money you can raid from someone you were given authority to protect?

[sweetliberty]

Wow...that's good to know. Thanks for the tip!

[agrace]

Good catch, well worth mentioning - in fact, three months of acute therapy. Imagine where Terri might, just might be now if allowed to rehabilitate. Barring a miracle, I don't think Terri would recover completely, but she deserves at least the chance to become as interactive as possible. From this article on Kate Adamson's website -

But with the transfer out of ICU to a rehab unit came new nightmares. Kate was still sufficiently paralyzed that she couldn't press the call button. "I was sure each night I would die in my sleep. I was a total prisoner. No matter what bad thing happened to me, I couldn't tell anyone."

But gradually, Kate recalls, she became a person again. The tubes and the IVs were removed. She learned to breathe. She learned to whisper, then--at the urging of the staff--learned to yell. "There was method in their madness," Kate says. "They were trying to strengthen my vocal chords." The strategy worked, and soon came the time when "they couldn't shut me up. It took a very long time, but I was no longer that quiet little thing."

She learned to swallow, so after weeks on an IV diet, she could eat and drink, working her way from liquid to solid food. The rehabilitation process was slow. Results, although they were satisfying to family and medical staff, were not nearly fast enough for Kate.

For those who haven't experienced it, "rehab" is not a very evocative word. It may call up images of walkers and canes and basket weaving--a lot of easy- does-it. For stroke survivors, it means a huge, basic, frustrating curriculum. The course on Eating, for example is marked by such sub-courses as Picking Up a Spoon; Putting the Food in Your Mouth Instead of Your Eye; Chewing; and Swallowing. The advanced course in Walking involves under grad classes in Picking Up the Left Foot; Putting the Left Foot Down; Picking Up the Right Foot..... The course on dressing includes such basics as Putting the Left Hand Into a Sleeve and the more advanced Tying Your Shoes.

[Beach_Babe]

I believe that much of the money awarded to Terri was used to pay attorney fees ... with the approval of the court.

[Aliska]

You're welcome. There is a delay before google adds pages to its search engine, and I don't know what it is, but you can always use your history in your browser to find some threads. Using history isn't as powerful but works in a pinch. Some people use bookmarks, but that gets to be too much sometimes.

[blueriver]

Are there legal limitations on how much money you can raid from someone you were given authority to protect?

I wouldn't be surprised if this is one of the reasons why he wants her dead. He knows just how much money he has removed from her account and he must realize that if he looses this battle someone will demand that he account for all of it.

[FITZ]

I think the use of that money should be questioned --- if the court that awarded the money in the lawsuit specified it was for her medical care, I wonder how another court later can say it was for paying attorney fees of lawyers that didn't provide her any care.

[FatherOfLiberty]

Hey! I'll volunteer my two "DaughtersOfLiberty" violinists to come down and play that tune as a duet for Felos and Schiovo.