Terri's Story

Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation ^ | December 3,2006 | Schindler Foundation

[8mmMauser]

Theresa Marie Schindler was born to Robert and Mary Schindler on December 3, 1963. She was the first of three children the Schindlers would have.

Terri was a shy, but comical, child who had an affinity for music, animals and the arts. She kept a small circle of friends and was dear to schoolmates, neighboring families and her own extended family.

Following high school, Terri came into her own. She developed a knack for sketching and doodling. She enjoyed outings with her friends. She was an adoptive mother to the family’s dog, Bucky.

Terri attended Catholic School while growing up and remained close to her faith throughout her life.

In 1983, Terri met Michael Schiavo at Bucks County Community College and the two began dating. He was the first romantic interest Terri had.

The couple was engaged within a few months and married a year later at Terri’s church in Southampton, Pa. She was 21.

In 1986, Terri and Michael relocated to Pinellas County, Florida and her parents followed three months later.

In 1990, at the age of 26, Terri suffered a mysterious cardio-respiratory arrest for which no cause has ever been determined. She was diagnosed with hypoxic encephalopathy – neurological injury caused by lack of oxygen to the brain. Terri was placed on a ventilator, but was soon able to breathe on her own and maintain vital function. She remained in a severely compromised neurological state and was provided a PEG tube to ensure the safe delivery of nourishment and hydration.

On March 31, 2005, Terri Schindler Schiavo died of marked dehydration following more than 13 days without nutrition or hydration under the order of Circuit Court Judge, George W. Greer of the Pinellas-Pasco’s Sixth Judicial Court. Terri was 41.

[8mmMauser]

Got our panties in a wad.

I am very sorry you got your panties in a wad. You really should wear boxers or jockey types because they don't bind as much.

I posted as I did because you sound more and more like a troll.

Macho sounding sarcasm doesn't substitute for wisdom, sounds just like macho sounding sarcasm, little else. If you really want to learn, then listen instead. We are glad to help people find out what happened.

You can check my post #243 to see if it resembles anyone you know. If you can't find it, I can repost it for clarity. If you want to find out about the living arrangements try a reference already given and show some smarts in the process. We aren't your researchers.

Now, what is your problem with oozing the sour comments? If you noticed and you certainly must, this is a thread of tribute to a wonderful person, Terri, and to her fine family as well. If you don't have the decency to recognize this, perhaps these threads on FreeRepublic aren't the forum for your tastes.

If you have something decent to or act civil instead of sarcasm, or something not intended to aggravate, well, go ahead.

Otherwise you are again illustrating what I described in my early post.

[hodaka]

First, it was post #234 not #243. All I am doing is playing devils advocate by some of the questions I am asking. Sorry if you don't like the questions or can't stand a little sarcasm.

[bjs1779]

All I am doing is playing devils advocate by some of the questions I am asking. Sorry if you don't like the questions or can't stand a little sarcasm.

Sure, you made that clear from the start.

[T'wit]

>> Did you see his #270? He didn't even know she had any broken bones or accusations of them. That is what you are arguing with.

There's much more to it than that, bjs1779. It isn't that Terri had broken bones. It's which bones. Her injuries were highly unusual. Her bone scan was thus a photo of extraordinary trauma. Her injuries were inflicted from behind. She suffered a compression fracture of her spine at L1. Several of her ribs were fractured in the same area -- at the back of the bones. (Sometimes patients have ribs broken by resuscitation efforts, but not the BACK of the ribs.) She also suffered a severe bone bruise to the femur of her right leg. That's unusual too.

This is why I invited justshutupandtakeit (as I do other visitors) to give me a theory of Terri's injuries that accounts for all the known medical facts. You can talk till you're blue in the face about people just keeling over, or about the police not finding evidence. But the bone scan shows Terri was attacked from behind. There's no way you can spin that into something innocent.

Now, who was there to attack her?

[bjs1779]

There's much more to it than that, bjs1779. It isn't that Terri had broken bones.

Well, I just through that in for starters. I had no reply.

[T'wit]

>> But it makes a person look more "beautiful" than ever?!

Why, yes. I got my Christmas card from George Felos this morning. It wishes us a beautiful Christmas and a really really beautiful dying experience with two teddy bears but no Communion.

[bjs1779]

If by popular demand, maybe we could show Dr. Walkers testimony. I know they want to hear the facts.

[T'wit]

>> I know they want to hear the facts.

If that isn't sarcasm, I've never heard it :-) :-)

[T'wit]

Hypokalemia following trauma.

    * Beal AL,
    * Scheltema KE,
    * Beilman GJ,
    * Deuser WE.

North Memorial Health Care, Robbinsdale, Minnesota, 55422, USA.

"Frequent hypokalemia was noted immediately after trauma, and it was hypothesized that hypokalemia occurred more frequently in the more severely injured." Detailed results follow... here

Terri, who had "severe" hypokalemia (K < 3.1 meq/l) -- hers was 2.0 -- fit only too snugly into several of these categories associated with more serious injuries.

Note. Terri's hypokalemia was spotted immediately in the ER, treated by an IV drip (as I recall) and stabilized within hours. Her blood potassium was normal by afternoon and the problem never recurred. It was a one-time thing, presumably caused by one-time trauma or stress. Needless to say, this is not the profile of chronic potassium deficiencies caused by drinking 4 gallons of iced tea at 4:30 a.m., Sundays.

[T'wit]

>> Do you know where most of her money went?

[Raises hand, waves hand, looks excitedly at teacher... }

LAWYERS!!

[hodaka]

Of course, didn't those lawyer's from the big tobacco law suite pocket billions.

[T'wit]

Go to bed, you've had too much to drink.

[8mmMauser]

Carrie K. Hutchens in the Dakota Voice calls it as she sees it...

............................

While some big corporations are bullying around and taking advantage of the fact the little guy doesn't have the money and attorney access they do, various courts and prosecutors seem to be doing their fair share of bullying and playing by "tipped" rules as well. Apparently some don't care who they get, as long as they were able to get someone and claim the case is closed.

Let's look down in the land of Florida where a judge was able to sentence a disabled woman (Terri Schiavo) to death by starvation and dehydration. Apparently it is legal to starve and dehydrate people down there, but not dogs. Ask Donald H. Bryant, 54, who is out on $40,000 bail after being arrested for the death by starvation and dehydration of three dogs in his charge. (The fourth lived.)

It is the same Florida where Judge Farnell fined Lucy Hadi, Director of DCF, $80,000 for not moving inmates, who have been declared incompetent, out of prisons fast enough. Farnell apparently sees himself doing whatever it takes to make DCF follow the laws and rules and protect the vulnerable. Of course, this is the same Florida where Judge George Greer refused to allow the DCF to be able to follow through on an investigation of a disabled individual's plight. DCF is apparently wrong if they do and wrong if they don't. Throw the dice and see what rules come up for the day or the case. Spin the wheel -- where the court order goes no one knows.

Texas doesn't fair much better. It is the state of the "futile care law" that seems to have gotten out of hand and is being taken wrongful advantage of. I see it as "Run out of money -- suddenly run out of hope for survival law". Nevertheless, it doesn't stop at the health care doors. Trial by chance can sneak up on people who are just going to work one day and suddenly find themselves at the wrong end of a gun barrel. Ask Gary Scales and the others who had the cards stacked against them by prosecutors no less.

Snip...

There was a time that it was the duty of the prosecutor to bring it to the court's attention if evidence came to light to prove the innocence of the person charged. That is how it should be. Otherwise, the prosecutor is not winning on the merits of the case... not winning because the person is guilty... but winning because he/she is simply playing the information better than the defense. That is not justice. That serves no purpose. It is evil and wrong and makes the prosecutor and anyone else involved nothing better than the worse criminal they ever prosecuted.

How can we trust a judicial system such as ours has become where it is trial by chance with the rules ever changing? We can't!

Carrie Hutchens is a former law enforcement officer and a freelance writer who is active in fighting against the death culture movement and the injustices within the judicial and law enforcement systems.

The Game: Trial by Chance - Chapter Two

8mm

[8mmMauser]

Good morning, T'wit, BB, hoping everyone is up and around at this fine hour. How is this for starting the day? Carrie Hutchens goes after the devilish advocates and the Texas Futile Caregivers.

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[8mmMauser]

Tribute

A short tribute to the Schindler family... Terri, her parents, and brother and sister.  I base this not on what I read or heard from others but only on what I saw.

Throughout the vigil, I would see the Schindlers regularly, during times which would rend an ordinary  family asunder.  As I would witness and be near this family of giants, I just was dwarfed in humility, standing nearby and in the shadows, not deigning to even go offer clumsy words of comfort.

They stood strong in the mind boggling adversity and up against the ridiculous mindless ridicule hurled at them with evil intent.  We have even seen some of that assault on this thread.  But they remained true to their faith, all of them, an inspiration beyond explaining to those of us who witnessed.

For it was the Schindlers, devout, faithful and courageous who were offering the comfort.  Time and again we of weaker spine would break.  Some of our band of supporters so overtaken with emotion would crumble temporarily and the Schindlers, each of them would take that special time to comfort those who came to comfort the Schindlers.  

Watching them stand tall on that Holy Week of Easter with the burdens they shouldered, the scene delivered a new inspiration to us of lesser stripe, a new understanding of how Good stands up to evil in this greatest battle of good versus evil I have ever  witnessed.

Terri was indeed blessed to have a family like her mother and father and siblings.  Likewise, the Schindlers were blessed with that special honor of being the family of Terri.

I only wish we all could live up better to the example posed by the Schindlers and by the words of Monsignor Malanowski which we posted earlier in this thread.

God Bless Terri and her fine family.

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[8mmMauser]

In Pennsylvania a new term is evolving, addressing what many believe would answer the dilemma faced by Terri. But I can only imagine what if anything would have evolved differently had such directives been in place back when it all happened.

...................

Most of us are familiar with the daunting medical term "DNR" -- Do Not Resuscitate.

For many persons worried about whether life-saving measures would be taken should they be stricken by disease or a stroke into a comatose state where they cannot choose their medical care, the DNR "orders" provide a measure of assurance that their wishes will be followed.

Now comes "POLST," a slightly more complex document system, but one providing additional assurance that the individual's directions will be observed.

POLST -- Physician's Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment -- are drawn up at participating hospitals and are used on a voluntary basis by emergency medical services, nursing homes and hospitals. It's a system that Dr. Judith Black, medical director of senior products for Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, says needs to be broadened.

The POLST procedure is designed "for use with seriously ill people, who it would not be surprising if they died in a year or two," she told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Taking last orders to next step

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[8mmMauser]

I wonder if a new verb is evolving in Pennsylvania. Polsting?

[T'wit]

Good morning! I've been poking around Terri archives, looking for the Pinellas Country animal cruelty laws. As we all should recall, Pinellas County bans dehydration and starvation of animals under its anti-CRUELTY laws. No exceptions. The document seems to be in a different machine, unfortunately.

In any case, I never understood why Terri was not protected by the unequivocal Pinellas County statute. It applied to all animals. If Terri was not an animal, Darwinian theory just suffered a terrible setback.

[T'wit]

I dunno, POLST is one more intervention and it sounds more than a little suspicious to me. The last thing we need is more bureaucrat-think. Look at the last two sentences of this news item:

"It's also an attempt to forestall any repeat of the nightmare surrounding the death of Terri Schiavo in Florida. Any curb on government intervention in such a highly personal and private tragedy is long overdue."

Michael Schiavo could have written that.

All the "interventions" in Terri's case were efforts to save her life. This writer speaks of curbing them. Draw your own conclusions.

[T'wit]

Here we go:

Pinellas County Animal Control Ordinance

Sec. 14-32. Cruelty to animals.

(a) Whoever impounds or confines any animal in any place and fails to supply the animal during such confinement with a sufficient quantity of good and wholesome food and water shall be in violation of this article.

(b) Whoever keeps any animal in any enclosure without wholesome exercise and change of air shall be in violation of this article.

(c) Whoever abandons to die any animal that is maimed, sick, infirm, or diseased shall be in violation of this article.

(d) A person who unnecessarily overloads, overdrives, tortures, torments, deprives of necessary sustenance or shelter, or unnecessarily or cruelly beats, mutilates, or kills any animal, or causes the same to be done, or carries in or upon any vehicle, or otherwise, any animal in a cruel or inhumane manner, shall be in violation of this article.

Looks to me like Michael Schiavo, George Greer and company violated all four sections of this ANTI-CRUELTY statute in the way they treated Terri.