That's because for the first 7 years of this he was a caring husband. 8 years ago is when he started the process we are in now.
The Schindlers now claim that Michael doesn't want Terri to wake up because she would be able to testify that she was injured when he tried to kill her - they claim they've believed that from the start, but they didn't testify to that during the malpractice trial, etc.
Their story has changed, dramatically.