Fed Appeals Court Grant Terri's Parents Petition for Rehearing

FNC

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

FEDERAL APPEALS COURT WILL LET TERRI'S PARENTS FILE A PETITION FOR REHEARING FOR AN INJUNCTION TO REINSERT FEEDING TUBE... BREAKING

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Moderator update:

Court Says Yes To Schiavo Parents

March 30, 2005

(CBS/AP) A federal appeals court early Wednesday granted Terri Schiavo's parents the right to file a petition for rehearing for an injunction that could allow their daughter's feeding tube to be reconnected.

The ruling came just after midnight from a federal appeals court in Atlanta.

On Tuesday, Schiavo's 12th full day without food or water, the Rev. Jesse Jackson prayed with her parents and joined conservatives in calling for state lawmakers to order her feeding tube reinserted.

The former Democratic presidential candidate was invited by Schiavo's parents to meet with activists outside Schiavo's hospice. His arrival was greeted by some applause and cries of "This is about civil rights!"

"I feel so passionate about this injustice being done, how unnecessary it is to deny her a feeding tube, water, not even ice to be used for her parched lips," he said. "This is a moral issue and it transcends politics and family disputes."

As the Schiavo deathwatch drags on, CBS News Correspondent Mark Strassmann spoke with two families who grappled with the same issues as the Schindlers and Michael Schiavo. On one side are Dorothy and Michael Brocato, who have provided care for their brain-damaged daughter Lisa, who suffered brain damage from a heart attack 15 years ago.

"We have devoted our lives to taking care of Lisa, says her mother. The Brocatos are sympathetic to the Schindler's wish to keep Terri Schiavo alive

"I love her. I love her. I couldn't picture not having her around me,'' says Dorothy Brocato.

Ron Oister has watched the Schiavo drama play out from a very different perspective. When Oister's father was essentially brain-dead, his son's wrenching decision was to let his father go.

"It was very hard,'' Oister told Strassmann. "That was my father. And he was in front of me. And I knew he could never return to what he had been."

Oister says Schiavo's parents helped create this needless public spectacle because they refused to face their hard reality.

"She died then, not now. My own experience would say that one ends life at that time."

Jesse Jackson's visit provided an emotional boost to Schiavo's parents and siblings, who have maintained that Schiavo would want to be kept alive. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, insists he is carrying out her wishes by having the feeding tube pulled.

Mary Schindler, Terri Schiavo's mother, later made a terse but emotional appeal to Michael Schiavo: "Michael and Jodi, you have your own children. Please, please give my child back to me." Michael Schiavo and fiancee Jodi Centonze have two children, born long after Terri Schiavo fell into paralysis.

Although supporters of the Schindlers have claimed the dehydrated woman is being denied comfort measures such as ice chips for her dry mouth or balm for chapped lips, George Felos, the husband's attorney, defended how Schiavo is being cared for.

"Obviously, the parents and the siblings are desperate. Desperation may lead to different perceptions," Felos told CNN. "I can only tell you what I've seen, and Terri is dying a very peaceful, cared-for death." Felos did not return phone messages seeking comment from The Associated Press.

Jackson said he asked Michael Schiavo for permission to see the brain-damaged woman but was denied. He also telephoned black legislators in a last-ditch effort to bring back a bill that would prohibit severely brain-damaged patients from being denied food and water if they didn't express their wishes in writing. Lawmakers rejected the legislation earlier this month and appeared unlikely to reconsider it.

One of those contacted by Jackson, Democratic state Sen. Gary Siplin, said he told Jackson the issue had been "thoroughly discussed." Senate Democratic leader Les Miller added, "I have voted. It's time to move on."

The chief sponsor of the measure, state Sen. Daniel Webster, said he knew of no changed votes and that Jackson's efforts may have come too late.

"If he could sway votes — and I'm certain he may be able to — it would have been helpful if he had done that a little earlier" said Webster, a Republican. "We're running out of time. To do it now is not as timely as a couple of weeks ago would have been."

Bob Schindler described his daughter as "failing" following his visit Tuesday.

"She still looks pretty darn good under the circumstances," Schindler said. "You can see the impact of no food and water for 12 days. Her bodily functions are still working. We still have her."

First lady Laura Bush also commented on the case Tuesday, saying the government was right to have intervened on behalf of Schiavo.

"It is a life issue that really does require government to be involved," Bush said aboard a plane bound for Afghanistan, where she was to promote education and women's rights.

During Jackson's visit, a man was tackled to the ground by officers when he tried to storm into the hospice, police said. He became the 47th protester arrested since the feeding tube was removed March 18. The man had two bottles of water with him but did not reach the hospice door, police said.

Doctors have said Terri Schiavo, 41, would probably die within a week or two of the tube being removed. She suffered catastrophic brain damage in 1990 when her heart stopped for several minutes because of a chemical imbalance apparently brought on by an eating disorder.

The parents also lost another round in the courts Tuesday when an appeals court upheld a pervious ruling by Judge George Greer that blocked the Department of Children and Families from intervening in the case.




Court Says Yes To Schiavo Parents

[windchime]

"If not, stop blaming Jeb for this, and place the blame where it actually lies."

Yes!

It IS Jeb Bush's fault that Terri's parents have had her an additional two years, and in the interim, have had time to pursue legal challenges.

[Freedom Blitz]

"Michael Schiavo and fiancee Jodi Centonze have two children, born long after Terri Schiavo fell into paralysis."

Appears the author feels MS waited the proper amount of time to break that silly marriage oath he pledged to Terri in front of God.

[Norman Bates]

I agree with your statement. But we must do everything we can to save our sister Terri. She is now suffering and dying becuase of willful decisions by those deigned to uphold the law and protect life. God's Will be done, indeed.

[ArmstedFragg]

Was a hearing held

Apparently some of the reporting last night was inaccurate. What the court actually granted was just permission to late file papers requesting a rehearing. So, there'd need to be a petition, a decision to grant an en banc hearing, briefing, then the hearing itself before there'd be any action. I'm not aware of what, if any, of that has actually happened yet. It's looking more and more like the clock has run.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you for your reply!

I certainly agree that we must not let up in our efforts to save Terri - and through it all and for whatever may follow, let God's will always be our heart's desire.

[snarkytart]

"Tuesday, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals didn't say when it would decide whether to grant the hearing"

Just grapped this line from Yahoo.

You are correct.

[SvdByFaith]

But don't forget....he had two girlfriends BEFORE he met JC.

"In late 1991, 1½ years after Terri’s collapse, Michael Schiavo
became involved in an intimate relationship with Cindy Shook.
The romance continued for approximately one year. It can be
documented that the two spent a weekend at the Don Caesar hotel
in St. Petersburg Beach and they also contacted a Century 21
Realtor on the premise of purchasing a home.

In May of 1992, at the apex of the romance, Schiavo
had Terri’s 2 pet cats euthanized to clear the way
for his moving in with Cindy and her pet dog.

In the summer of 1992, Schiavo moved into his parent’s home.
We can speculate with reasonable accuracy, it was
at the instructions of his attorney, since the
living arrangement would be contrary to Schiavo’s
"loving husband" image they were projecting for the
upcoming November 1992 malpractice trial."
http://fight4terri.blogspot.com/2005/02/michael-schiavos-former-girlfriend.html

[bvw]

The distinction in hearsay of a "Verbal Act" appears came about o allow validity of verbal contracts, or verbal conditions of sale. There are exceptions to hearsay, the "verbal rule" is one.

Underlying each of the exceptions to the hearsay rule is either the absence of one or more of the dangers (misperception, flawed memory, inaccurate narration, insincerity), and/or the presence of one or more of the safeguards (oath or cross-examination), or some special circumstance ensuring reliability.

(Source: http://www.aaml.org/Articles/2000-1/evidence.htm)

In this case Micheal Schiavo's testified under oath (and cross?) as to his wife's desires at end of life. However that hearsay should not ever have excepted under "verbal act" because (1) the memory could reasonably be expected to be flawed by conflict-of-interest, by age of the memory, by lack of supporting testimonies and (2) the statement by Terri was made just after or during the viewing of an emotionally charged TV movie, a movie that may have been produced to evoke just that kind of emotionally non-reasoned response to some horrific death process. It was the least reliable of hearsays, how much more completely dangerous to use (dangerous meaning reackless with regard to ability to establish truthfulness) could it have been? Not more at all.

[anniegetyourgun]

Well said. For believers, I wish we could remember that our battle isn't with flesh and blood (Michael Shiavo and/or Jeb Bush). This is a spiritual battle. First we must concern ourselves with the soul of Terri. His arm is not too short to reach her for Himself. He may still intervene in her affairs in this life, but He may intend to heal her completely by bringing her into His presence. Secondly, we must pray against the powers that come to kill and destroy. Lastly, we must prayerfully contend for our nation, teaching them all that He has commanded.

[fromunda]

With all due respect, these opinions regarding Jeb Bush are without any, and I do mean ANY, legal substantiation. Remember this, but for Jeb Bush, Terri Schiavo would have died a couple years ago - Jeb Bush has been a stalwart supporter of Terri Schiavo from Day 1.

Instead of directing your anger, understandable as it is, towards our side, might I suggest that you direct towards the side which has no principle, no guiding force, no understanding of the sanctity of life, whether on the issue of partial birth abortion or right to die issues with adults, . . . the national Democratic party.

Rationality has left this site long ago on this Schiavo issue - I can understand why in some respects, because it evokes such passion. But passion without reason is useless - it's viewed as nothing more than ineffective hyperbole.

Scream all you want at our team members, but no team ever won making itself it's opponent. Kindly stated, your anger and the anger of many on this site towards Jeb Bush, President Bush and Congressional Republicans is grossly missplaced and without any substantive foundation.

[Alamo-Girl]

Beautifully, beautifully, beautifully said dear anniegetyourgun! I fully agree. Thank you for your post!

[AlbionGirl]

I don’t think you should leave over this, you are, as you pointed out the heart and soul of the Party. The blue-bloods and moderates are most certainly NOT!

That being said, do you really think Governor Bush and/or President Bush are the bad guys here? Do you really think it would have been a good idea to storm the barricades of the Hospice where Terri is dying? I don’t. I even think the protestors should go away, and it is unconscionable to make protestors out of children, absolutely unconscionable!

I don’t know whether they had the power to take her by force or not because I’m no legal scholar, but they certainly tried within the realm of the judiciary to get her feeding tube reinserted. They did fail, that’s true, but not because they don’t care, but because they weren’t certain they were on good legal footing to interfere, and did not want to cause a Constitutional crisis. It’s impossible for me to take either one of them to task for this.

The one thing this situation clearly reveals though, is that the Federal Government is beholding to the Judiciary, and is as impotent as can be, as it regards intervening in a probate judge’s decision to demand a citizen of his State commence and complete the process of dying.

What we need to concentrate on is making sure that no other SINO retains the power of life and death over a spouse he or she abandoned a long time ago. Such as spouse is no type of KIN, even in the most degraded definition of that term.

[PhiKapMom]

Sitting here shaking my head as I type!

[fromunda]

If what you say is true, that's utterly insane. The pro-life movement, of which I am part, has no business staying home when the threat to our position is real and substantial.

What, we pro-lifers only vote when we're already winning? That's ridiculous.

But for the consistent, persistent efforts of pro-life Republicans, like Rick Santorum, there wouldn't be a partial birth abortion ban enacted into law. But, despite setback after setback, he persevered and it is now done.

This is a setback, but not a reason to stay home - it's a reason to fight and to move forward with an agenda that respects life and advances our cause. For those, who read this and are inclined to stay home, I challenge your conviction to this agenda. How can you say you stand for life, when at this setback, you want to sit down? If you don't stand for anything, that, my friends, is how you lose political elections.

[Freedom Blitz]

"In May of 1992, at the apex of the romance, Schiavo
had Terri’s 2 pet cats euthanized to clear the way
for his moving in with Cindy and her pet dog. "

This guy is a monster!

Thank You for the info.

[Pepper777]

RedBloodedAmerican wrote: ""It is amazing that all this time, as Felos has spoouted that "this case has been ruled on 22 times by different Judges and courts", all the rulings have been only on reviewing the ruling by Greer. That none of them have looked at the facts surrounding this individually. Just amazing."""


I totally agree, with your post. Felos is a master of Double Speak. I'm disgusted by Felos and those who support him.

[PhiKapMom]

Is Jesse at the Florida Senate today?

[PhiKapMom]

Very well stated. Thanks for posting that!

[Sea2ShiningSea]

BRAVO!

[Lynne]

I think you're right. Sadly, I believe the clock has run out on Terri physically. Even if the family were successful, I don't know if Terri could hold on long enough to get it all done.