http://www.wftv.com/news/2638461/detail.html Judge Says Terri Schiavo Case Can Proceed
CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Saying that a brain-damaged woman's constitutional rights are being violated, a state circuit judge Friday rejected an effort by Gov. Jeb Bush to delay a challenge to a law that allowed the governor to order reinsertion of the woman's feeding tube last month.
Circuit Judge W. Douglas Baird, after a brief hearing, ruled that Michael Schiavo's lawsuit against Bush can proceed. He ordered an attorney for the governor to submit a brief by Monday defending the constitutionality of the law that allowed Bush to order Terri Schiavo's feeding tube reinserted Oct. 21.
Baird said Terri Schiavo's right not to be kept alive artificially was successfully defended by her husband in state courts, and any delays in removing the feeding tube so she can die are violating her constitutional right to privacy.
"The deprivation of this right is immediate, ongoing and presumptively unconstitutional," Baird said from the bench.
However, Baird said, the final determination of the constitutionality of the law will be made later after another hearing. It has not been scheduled.
Besides violating Terri Schiavo's right to privacy, Michael Schiavo's lawsuit against Bush contends that the hastily passed law that authorized the governor to intervene violated the separation-of-power provision of the Florida Constitution.
An attorney for Bush tried to block the lawsuit on procedural grounds, filing with the 2nd District Court of Appeal on Monday. That appeal triggered an automatic stay of Michael Schiavo's action, prompting his attorney, George Felos, to file a motion Wednesday to override the stay so the case can move forward.
Felos said Bush's appeal was a delaying tactic and Baird's ruling recognized that.
"We're obviously very pleased with the judge's decision to vacate the stay, and not only that but his acknowledgment of the facts in this case," Felos said. He called on Bush to abandon any further delays and allow the matter to be litigated.
Amy Quezon, who argued the motion on behalf of Bush, declined comment.
Officials in Bush's office have denied trying to delay the case, saying that they are just trying to make Felos follow the rules. They claim he failed to properly serve the governor with a copy of the lawsuit and that he should have filed it in Tallahassee where Bush is based.
Michael Schiavo has been fighting his in-laws, Bob and Mary Schindler, in court for years for the right to remove his wife's feeding tube, saying she would not want to be kept alive artificially. She suffered severe brain damage in 1990 when her heart temporarily stopped, cutting off oxygen to her brain.
Some doctors and a judge have ruled that Terri Schiavo is in a persistent vegetative state with no hope for recovery. Her parents, however, dispute those findings, saying they believe she could improve with therapy.
Florida courts had repeatedly affirmed the right of Michael Schiavo to remove his wife's feeding tube because he is her legal guardian.