Now, she may die during a possible putative transfer.
Posted on 03/25/2005 4:33:23 AM PST by ex-Texan
Jeb Bush may take Terri Schiavo into state care
The war over the fate of Terri Schiavo was entering its final stages today as her parents clung to two slim hopes of preventing their severely brain-damaged daughter from being allowed to die.
The 41-year-old has been without food or water for almost seven days, after her feeding tube was removed last Friday on the orders of a Florida state judge.
Friends and lawyers say she is showing signs of dehydration - flaky skin, dry tongue and lips, and sunken eyes. Doctors have said she would probably die within a week or two of the tube being removed.
"It's very frustrating. Every minute that goes by is a minute that Terri is being starved and dehydrated to death," said her brother, Bobby Schindler, who said seeing her was like looking at "pictures of prisoners in concentration camps".
But Brian Schiavo, the brother of Mrs Schiavo's husband Michael who has argued for her to be allowed to die with dignity, strongly disagreed, telling CNN that Terri Schiavo "does look a little withdrawn" but insisting she was not in pain. He added that starvation is simply "part of the death process".
One of the final hopes of Mrs Schiavo's parents lies in the federal courts. Last night Bob and Mary Schindler went back before a federal judge in Tampa, filing another emergency request that the feeding tube be reattached while they pursue claims that their daughter's rights are being violated.
District Judge James Whittemore previously rejected an almost identical request on Tuesday. He promised to work through the night to issue his new ruling.
The second and more dramatic hope lies in the hands of Jeb Bush, the Governor of Florida, who was last night considering the politically explosive step of ordering state officials to force their way into the hospice where Mrs Schiavo lies motionless and take her into state custody, in defiance of the US courts.
A Florida judge yesterday rejected a request by Governor Bush to allow the state to take custody of her, but the governor's aides afterwards refused to rule out further action.
The possibility emerged on Wednesday night, when Governor Bush declared that Mrs Schiavo - who court-appointed doctors say has been in persistent vegetative state for 15 years - had been misdiagnosed. He based his assertion on "new information" provided by William Cheshire, a Florida neurologist, who says that she may only be in a "minimally conscious" state.
Although Dr Cheshire, a leading member of the Christian right-to-life movement, did not examine Mrs Schiavo, he observed her for an hour on March 1. Governor Bush maintained that his testimony was compelling enough for the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) to take her into protective custody.
On Wednesday night, amid reports that Florida state officials were "mobilising" outside Mrs Schiavo's hospice, Florida Circuit Judge George Greer issued an emergency restraining order prohibiting DCF agents from seizing her.
Judge Greer then formally rejected Governor Bush's custody request yesterday. Last night he refused to hold a new hearing to assess Dr Cheshire's claims.
He also ordered the local sheriff's department not to allow state officials into Mrs Schiavo's hospice - but, under Florida law, the governor has the power, without court clearance, of taking a citizen into custody for a 24-hour appraisal if it is suspected they are in jeopardy.
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Now, she may die during a possible putative transfer.
If I were in Florida I would vote for Gov. Bush. He has done all he absolutely can. Why are people advocating he takes this further?
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is under growing pressure to intervene, but he says he "cannot go beyond what my powers are."
It is very late in the game on both counts.
Jeb will not step in now. He waited too long. Pray for a miracle!
For him, I hope it involves gang rape in a prison shower followed by 10 or so years of dealing with AIDS. Death process. What a crock.
I'm sorry but that picture is just pathetic. If people really cared about the Terri issue there would be tens of thousands, no, hundreds of thousands of people surrounding the hospice, 24 hours a day.
What happens instead is emails, phone calls, online petitions and photoshops - all of which can be done without actually getting off your arse.
If I see one picture of an American Eagle with a tear in it's eye posted after Terri passes away, I swear that my PC gets thrown out of the window.
They just announced that Whittemore denied the 2nd request...I don't think there is anything else that can be done.
Unfortunately, the Declaration of Independence carries no legal weight.
Terri Schiavo was turned into a political football tossed around by both sides. And people are angry about that as well.
This is about who determines when we die.
But Brian Schiavo, the brother of Mrs Schiavo's husband Michael who has argued for her to be allowed to die with dignity, strongly disagreed, telling CNN that Terri Schiavo "does look a little withdrawn" but insisting she was not in pain. He added that starvation is simply "part of the death process".
Yes, dehydration is (sometimes) a part of the death process...the natural death process. Natural meaning when God decides it's time for one to die. Starvation is not (in this case) natural. There are people in my area who have gone to JAIL for not feeding their horses. Mass murderers are killed with an injection.
To not afford this woman the same rights animals and criminals have is cruel. To murder her instead of allowing her to die naturally says a whole lotta bad about our society.
That's what this is about.
Another appeal to the 11th, but they will deny the motion again.
I think Jeb Bush blew his chances the other day when he announced on national TV that he was going to take custody of Terri and failed to do so. I saw him on Fox this morning and he looked like a wounded puppy. If he don't show some courage soon, his political career is over. IMHO
What an a$$hole.
So lynchings are part of the civil rights process.
And JFK's assasination was part of the political process.
You're then advocating he step outside the law. He is right not to do that. This is one person who would support him, and I knwo there are millions others out there. In fact, I'm going to send him an email of support.
Comparing the Schavio fiasco to what happened to the Branch Davidians is the height lunacy.
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