. . . . . . . Johnny Gage MEGA PING . . . . . . .
Freep mail me if you want off my list
Posted on 08/05/2003 5:55:05 AM PDT by kattracks
Capitol Hill (CNSNews.com) - Attorneys for the parents of a 39-year-old Florida woman - who suffered brain damage under uncertain circumstances in 1990 - asked the Florida Supreme Court Monday to stop her husband from allowing her to die by starvation and dehydration. The woman's family has also launched an online petition asking Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) to intervene in the case.
Terri Schindler Schiavo is scheduled to begin dying Monday, August 25. On that date, her nutrition and hydration will be stopped unless the Florida Supreme Court or Gov. Bush intervene.
George Felos, the attorney representing Terri's husband, Michael Schiavo, told CNSNews.com Monday that there is no hope for her condition to improve.
"She is in a 'Persistent Vegetative State' (PVS)," Felos said. "We've had doctors testify, now, in two trials before the court, and the court is absolutely convinced she is in a vegetative condition."
But Terri's father, Bob Schindler, disputed Felos' characterization of his daughter's condition.
"People keep referring to her as 'being in a coma,'" he said. "She's not in any way comatose. She's responsive, she's trying to talk."
Doctors for the parents and siblings have argued that, with appropriate therapy, Terri's condition could improve.
"A speech pathologist just filed an affidavit last week stating that Terri is communicating now," Schindler said. "There is more evidence in court from physicians stating that Terri is not in a 'Persistent Vegetative State' than her husband has doctors stating that she is."
Supporters of the family have launched a website displaying video recordings of Terri purportedly attempting to answer questions, opening her eyes in response to instructions to do so from a doctor and responding to her mother's voice by smiling and turning her head.
Felos called the debate over Terri's medical condition "a red herring."
"Terri Schiavo didn't say, 'If I'm in a vegetative condition, I don't want to be kept alive artificially,'" Felos claimed. "She said, 'If I'm in a condition where I can't care for myself, I'm dependent on the care of others, I don't want to be kept alive artificially.'"
Terri's husband, his brother, Scott Schiavo, and his sister-in-law, Joan Schiavo, all testified that Terri had previously stated her desire not to be kept alive artificially. Both the initial trial court and an appellate court have sided with Michael Schiavo as Terri's legal guardian.
But Terri's parents have questions about the circumstances of the reported heart attack that caused Terri's brain damage, questions they believe should cast doubt on Michael Schiavo's fitness to be Terri's guardian. They point to an emergency room "admitting summary" from the night the brain damage occurred, which noted that Terri had a "rigid neck." One physician reviewing the records stated that the only other patient he had treated with a similarly "rigid neck" had been the victim of strangulation.
The parents also believe a bone-scan report supports their theory that Terri's brain damage is the result of an assault and not a heart attack. The parties in the dispute hotly contest the bone scan, which was completed 53 weeks after the event that led to the brain damage.
Three physicians have testified that, based upon the bone scan, Terri appeared to have been physically assaulted. The injuries they identified included "trauma to her ribs, her pelvic area, L1 vertebrae, spine, both knees and both ankles...a broken femur and a broken back."
Felos and Michael Schiavo's doctors also dispute those claims.
"What that bone scan shows is...an accumulation of calcium deposits in the joints," Felos explained.
He also dismissed the accusation that Michael Schiavo allegedly tried, unsuccessfully, to strangle his wife, cutting off the flow of oxygen to her brain, resulting in brain damage.
"They're hogwash," he said. "They make good copy, and they're good propaganda, but there's no truth to it."
Felos believes the attempts by the Schindler family to keep their daughter alive are based not on her condition or what caused it, but on their personal beliefs.
"This case really is about ideology. It's about the ideology of the parents and their attempts to impose their will on Terri," he charged. "The Schindlers are being supported financially, their lawyers are being paid by the fanatic anti-choice, right-to-life proponents in this country."
CNSNews.com was unable to speak directly with Schindler family attorney Pat Anderson to determine who, if anyone, is paying for her services. Felos acknowledged that he was receiving payment for his services from the medical malpractice award fund established to provide for Terri's rehabilitation. He said that he has not, however, been paid in more than a year.
The motion filed by the Schindler family attorneys Monday asked the Florida Supreme Court to review the appellate court's decision based on an alleged misapplication of legal standards in determining whether or not Terri Schindler Schiavo is in a "Persistent Vegetative State" and therefore, legally eligible to be removed from life support.
Felos will have 20 days to respond, after which the Florida Supreme Court may choose to hear the case or simply rule in favor of Michael Schiavo. Should the latter occur, the trial judge would set a new date to cease Terri's feeding and hydration. She would be expected to die within 10 to 15 days.
E-mail a news tip to Jeff Johnson.
Send a Letter to the Editor about this article.
Her condition doesn't look any different from those suffering from spinal bifida or any other mental condition.
If the courts allow the hydration and feeding tube to be removed, this would be an excruciating death for her. It would also be a murder.
In the Nancy Cruzan case back in 1990, Nancy's relatives demanded that she be "allowed" to die by withholding food and water from her. The US Supreme Court rejected the Cruzan family's arguments and upheld the right of the state to protect human life where there had not been a clearly defined wish on the part of the patient to refuse treatment.
However, Nancy Cruzan's relatives found a legal loophole and were successful in killing her.
I wonder how many people know that Joe Cruzan committed suicide a few years after forcing his daughter to starve to death?
I read an article of a man who came out of coma after some 19 years. (The Washington Times, July 19, 2003)
I don't understand, why Jeb is not weighing in on this. . .
Don't just "let her go." That's cruel...If she is to die, it should be done humanely (like we do pets.)
She should "at least" be "put to sleep." Starvation and dehydration is cruel.
This may be the real reason her husband wants her dead. I've found the 'heart attack' explanation of her condition a bit dubious.
I hate to inject a bit of rationality into this, but all of us were scheduled to "begin dying" the day we came out of our mother's womb.
-Jay
It is interesting that the husband's lawyer should use these terms. I wonder what his ultimate goal with this case might be. Does he want to establish legal precendent for others in the country to be able to use?
I can't argue either way since I don't know the facts, but my gut tells me that if this woman is responding in any way, and that should be determined by some independent medical personnel, then she should be given the opportunity to live.
I think it is suspicious, to say the least, that the only ones arguing for her food and water to be cut off are her husband's relatives. Is there some financial advantage for him if she dies? If it turns out that the judge does allow this to happen, he should also make the husband sit by his wife's bedside so he can see the results of his decision as she lays dying a very uncomfortable death.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.