Appeals Court Rebuffs Schiavo Parents

[Gua]

Appeals Court Rebuffs Schiavo Parents

9 minutes ago


PINELLAS PARK, Fla. (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday denied a request for a full bench hearing on a bid by the parents of brain-damaged Florida woman Terri Schiavo to have her feeding tube restored, a court official said.








The judges of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (news - web sites) in Atlanta voted 10 to 2 not to grant a full hearing, the official said.


The decision closed another legal avenue to the parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, who have fought their son-in-law for seven years in the courts to prolong their daughter's life.


The Schindlers had asked the full appeals court to overturn a three-judge panel's refusal overnight, by a 2-1 majority, to order a resumption of tube feeding that was halted under a state court order on Friday.


The parents' lawyers had argued in a written brief that a law passed by Congress over the weekend made clear a new federal trial was in order, and that the only way to permit that was by keeping Schiavo alive.


"Although barbarically deprived of food and water now for six days, the status quo is that she still lives," they said.


Doctors say Schiavo was likely to remain alive for one to two weeks after her feeding tube was removed.


Schiavo, 41, suffered brain damage after cardiac arrest in 1990 and was left in a "persistent vegetative state." State courts have sided with her husband Michael Schiavo's view that she would not want to be kept alive in that condition.


Her parents say she responds to them and could recover, and their determination to keep her alive has galvanized the Christian right and anti-abortion activists, and won support from the Republican-led Congress and President Bush (news - web sites).


The law raced through Congress sought to circumvent years of state court rulings and push the case into federal court for a new trial.


Its backers clearly assumed any federal judge given the case would first order feeding restored, but the federal appeals court's three-judge panel stressed in its ruling that the law did not spell that out.


Opinion polls show most Americans oppose the Congressional intervention, and critics have assailed it as an assault on federalism and civil rights, and as political meddling in a family dispute.


FROM COURT TO CONGRESS, AND BACK


But the parents' reinvigorated legal maneuvers since Schiavo's feeding tube was disconnected were parried by U.S. District Court Judge James Whittemore on Tuesday, who ruled Schiavo had not been denied due process in state courts.


The parents, Congress and President Bush were dealt another blow in the middle of the night when the federal court in Atlanta rejected the first appeal of Whittemore's ruling.


In its ruling, the panel acknowledged the "absolute tragedy that has befallen Mrs. Schiavo." But it supported the lower federal court in saying an emergency order to restore the feeding could not be issued as the parents had failed to show their overall case would succeed at trial.


Rights activists applauded the panel's decision.


The Schindlers were also seeking help from Florida lawmakers, who in 2003 passed a special law allowing Gov. Jeb Bush, President Bush's brother, to intervene when Schiavo's feeding tube was previously disconnected.

That law was eventually found to be unconstitutional and state senators last week rejected a new law, apparently under pressure from elderly Florida constituents opposed to government interference in their "end-of-life" decisions.

The Senate was holding a session Wednesday afternoon at which a renewed attempt to pass legislation might occur.

Jeb Bush said he would "continue to call on the Florida Legislature to pass legislation to honor patients' decisions about end of life care, protect all vulnerable Floridians, and spare Terri's life."

Mary Schindler has repeatedly appealed to state senators for help in recent days and did so again on Wednesday.

"Please stop the cruelty, stop the insanity. Let my daughter live," she said outside the hospice in Pinellas Park, Florida, where her daughter is being cared for.

Congress overstepped their boundaries

[tabby]

This is one of the saddest things that can happen to a family. I understand both parties, but I feel that Terri Shiavo should be allowed to die. I believe that she would not want to be kept alive as she is now; there are probably no too many people who would want to be in such a state for years and years.
On the other hand, it is the worst thing for the parents to stand helplessly by and watch her die slowly. We have been in a similar situation, and all I can say is to be your own judge and act, or accept the decisions and be quiet. There is a point when you have to become active.
In Terri's case, I would have transferred Terri andher feeding tube from the hospice to an undisclosed place. Basta! If the courts and the husband want to find out where she is, they'd have to torture me. I assume she could have been taken care of at home because the parents had offered that possibility.

[Gua]

Gov. Bush Seeks to Take Custody of Schiavo

21 minutes ago

By JILL BARTON, Associated Press Writer

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - Terri Schiavo's parents saw their options vanish one by one Wednesday as a federal appeals court refused to reinsert her feeding tube and the Florida Legislature decided not to intervene in the epic struggle. Refusing to give up, Gov. Jeb Bush sought court permission to take custody of Schiavo.


The desperate flurry of activity came as President Bush (news - web sites) suggested that Congress and the White House had done all they could to keep the severely brain-damaged woman alive.


As of Wednesday afternoon, Schiavo had gone five full days without food or water; doctors have said she could survive one to two weeks.


Supporters of Schiavo's parents grew increasingly dismayed, and 10 protesters were arrested outside her hospice for trying to bring her water.


"When I close my eyes at night, all I can see is Terri's face in front of me, dying, starving to death," Mary Schindler said outside the Pinellas Park hospice. "Please, someone out there, stop this cruelty. Stop the insanity. Please let my daughter live."


The Schindlers have vowed to take their fight to the U.S. Supreme Court (news - web sites), which refused to get involved previously.


Schiavo's tube was pulled Friday afternoon with a Florida judge's approval. By late Tuesday, her eyes were sunken and her skin, lips and tongue were parched, said Barbara Weller, an attorney for the Schindlers.


Schiavo suffered brain damage in 1990 when her heart stopped briefly from a chemical imbalance believed to have been brought on by an eating disorder. Court-appointed doctors say she is in a persistent vegetative state with no hope of recovery.


Her parents argue that she could get better and that she would never have wanted to be cut off from food and water. Schiavo's husband, Michael Schiavo, has argued that his wife told him she would not want to be kept alive artificially, and a state judge has repeatedly ruled in his favor.


The battle played out on several fronts Wednesday.


A three-judge panel from the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (news - web sites) ruled against the family early Wednesday, and hours later the full court refused to reconsider in a 10-2 vote.


Jeb Bush and the state's social services agency filed a petition in state court to take custody of Schiavo and, presumably, reconnect her feeding tube. It cites new allegations of neglect and challenges Schiavo's diagnosis as being in a persistent vegetative state. The request is based on the opinion of a neurologist working for the state who observed Schiavo at her bedside but did not conduct an examination of her.


The Florida Legislature also jumped back into the fray, but senators rejected a bill that would have prohibited patients like Schiavo from being denied food and water if they did not express their wishes in writing. The measure was rejected 21-18.


The Legislature stepped in before, in 2003, and Schiavo's feeding tube was reinserted. But "Terri's Law" was later struck down by the state Supreme Court as an unconstitutional attempt to interfere in the courts.


The Senate vote Wednesday came after a bitter debate, with Terri Schiavo's brother, Bobby Schindler, watching from the gallery above the floor. He covered his eyes with his hands and lowered his head during the debate.


"I'm here pleading for mercy. Have mercy on Theresa Marie Schiavo," said bill sponsor Sen. Dan Webster, a Republican.


But Senate Democratic Leader Les Miller warned: "By the time the ink is dry on the governor's signature, it will be declared unconstitutional, just like it was before."


A lawyer for Michael Schiavo said he was pleased by what happened in the appeals court. But he was bothered that the governor was attempting to intervene again.

"They have no more power than you or I or a person walking down the street to say we have the right to take Terri Schiavo," attorney George Felos said.

Meanwhile, President Bush suggested that he and Congress had done their best to help the parents prolong Schiavo's life, and the White House said it had no further legal options.

"I believe that in a case such as this, the legislative branch, the executive branch, ought to err on the side of life, which we have," the president said. "Now we'll watch the courts make their decisions."

Federal courts were given jurisdiction to review Schiavo's case after Republicans in Congress pushed through unprecedented emergency legislation over the weekend aimed at prolonging Schiavo's life. But federal courts at two levels rebuffed the family.

"There is no denying the absolute tragedy that has befallen Mrs. Schiavo," Judges Ed Carnes and Frank M. Hull said in the 2-1 decision by the 11th circuit panel. "We all have our own family, our own loved ones, and our own children. However, we are called upon to make a collective, objective decision."

Dissenting Judge Charles R. Wilson said Schiavo's "imminent" death would end the case before it could be fully considered. "I fail to see any harm in reinserting the feeding tube," he wrote.

Gov Bush is now "Meddling".......The people of Florida need to vote him out

[kalisa2]

awwwwww.... :crying: :crying: :crying:

You know, I believe completely in her right to die. I know I certainly wouldn't want to be kept alive artificially if I were in that state.

But the thought of allowing her to starve to death or die of thirst... that's just wrong. Ease her out in whatever possible comfort... no problem in my mind. But starvation and thirst... awwwwwww :crying: :crying:

I'm just having a problem with that...

[tabby]

From what I know, she will not suffer. It is actually the natural way to go. Had she been allowed to die right after the heart attack, she would have died the same way. No food, no fluids until her metabolism and organs would have given up. People who die of natural causes (at home) do not eat or drink during the last phase of death either. That's the way nature eases them out.
I know death and dying is not a favorite subject to read about. But I can recommend a book by David Kessler, "The Rights Of The Dying." This book is unique in that it describes the different stages of physical death.
Here is what he wrote about hunger and thirst.
He writes," Food and beverage intake generally decrease in the final stage of life. We're tempted to force food on the dying, thinking that everything would be alright if we could just get them to eat something. We're also afraid that they will die of starvation or thirst. But the inability or refusal to eat and drink is only a symptom of the larger problem, the one that will take them away from us." (p. 135)

[kalisa2]

AnnaKonda said:

From what I know, she will not suffer. It is actually the natural way to go. Had she been allowed to die right after the heart attack, she would have died the same way. No food, no fluids until her metabolism and organs would have given up. People who die of natural causes (at home) do not eat or drink during the last phase of death either. That's the way nature eases them out.
I know death and dying is not a favorite subject to read about. But I can recommend a book by David Kessler, "The Rights Of The Dying." This book is unique in that it describes the different stages of physical death.
Here is what he wrote about hunger and thirst.
He writes," Food and beverage intake generally decrease in the final stage of life. We're tempted to force food on the dying, thinking that everything would be alright if we could just get them to eat something. We're also afraid that they will die of starvation or thirst. But the inability or refusal to eat and drink is only a symptom of the larger problem, the one that will take them away from us." (p. 135)

Thanks AK... that makes observing this whole ordeal a little easier to bear.

k2 thinking she'd find a way to come back and haunt, NOT in a nice way, anybody who dragged her death thru national attention in this manner. JMO

[Gua]

Supreme Court Won't Hear Schiavo Case

12 minutes ago

By HOPE YEN, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to order Terri Schiavo's feeding tube reinserted, rejecting a desperate appeal by her parents to keep their severely brain-damaged daughter alive.



The decision, announced in a terse one-page order, marked the end of a dramatic and disheartening four-day dash through the federal court system by Bob and Mary Schindler.

Justices did not explain their decision, which was at least the fifth time they have declined to get involved in the Schiavo case.

There was no indication of how the individual justices voted.

The feeding tube that has been keeping Schiavo alive at a hospice in Pinellas Park, Fla., was removed last Friday. Doctors at the time said that unless it is reinserted she will die in a week or two.

The Schindlers are continuing legal fights in federal and state courts in Florida, but the Supreme Court appeal was considered their best chance of getting her tube reconnected.

The high court's decision was the latest in a string of losses in state and federal courts for the Schindlers, who say their 41-year-old daughter faces an unjust and imminent death based on a decision by her husband to halt nourishment without proof of her consent.

The Schindlers' emergency high court filing also argued that Congress intended for Schiavo's tube to be reinserted, at least temporarily, when it passed an extraordinary bill last weekend giving federal courts authority to fully review her case.

In his response, Michael Schiavo urged justices not to intervene because his wife's case already has been endlessly litigated and at each turn courts have sided with him.

His filing also argued that Congress violated the Constitution when it passed the bill because the action was improperly intended to overturn state court rulings on the matter.

"That is not an exercise of legislative power, but trial by legislature," the filing said.

The Schindlers' appeal went first to Justice Anthony Kennedy (news - web sites), a Reagan appointee who has staked a moderate position on social issues. Kennedy has responsibility in the first instance for cases emanating from the Southern district that is home to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (news - web sites) in Atlanta. He referred the Schiavo case to the full nine-member court.

The court's decision was not surprising. Not only had justices repeatedly declined to intervene in the Schiavo case on prior occasions, but they routinely defer to state courts on family law issues. Judges in various Florida courts have sided with Schiavo's husband in the 15 years since she suffered brain damage.

The issue before the high court was whether Schiavo's tube should be reinserted while her case is fully reviewed in the lower courts.

Justices could have ruled in favor of the parents if they had found a "substantial likelihood" the Schindlers would win on the merits or that Congress intended for Schiavo to remain attached to a feeding tube during the federal court review called for in the bill passed last weekend.

The court could also have sided with the parents if, as the Justice Department (news - web sites) argued in a "statement of interest" in the case, a federal law known as the All Writs Act were interpreted to empower federal courts to temporarily grant the emergency request — regardless of the merits of the case — simply to protect their "jurisdiction."

The federal appellate court in Atlanta rejected those claims earlier Wednesday.

A three-judge panel ruled 2-1 that the parents "failed to demonstrate a substantial case on the merits of any of their claims" that Schiavo's feeding tube should be reinserted immediately. About 13 hours later, the full 12-member court voted to deny the parents' request to reconsider the ruling.

"It would be very difficult for Justice Kennedy or the full court to justify granting a stay compelling reinsertion after the full 11th Circuit denied a rehearing and where the basis for changing the status quo is so problematic," Laurence Tribe, a Harvard constitutional law professor, said before the court ruled.

The Supreme Court has ruled that a terminally ill person in a "persistent vegetative state" has a right to refuse life-sustaining treatment. But the 5-4 decision authored by Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist also said that right was not unrestricted, holding that a state may impose a high legal burden on a family to show a patient had actually consented.

That 1990 ruling returned the case of Nancy Cruzan to Missouri state court, which eventually determined the comatose woman indeed had indicated she wanted to die as her parents argued.

Perhaps now the public and congress and Gov Bush will leave this to the husband and family.....

[Gua]

Florida intervenes again in Schiavo case
Agency alleges new abuses, questions 'vegetative state'



TALLAHASSEE, Florida (CNN) -- The state judge who ordered Terri Schiavo's feeding tube removed says he will rule by noon Thursday on the latest effort by Florida officials to intervene in the brain-damaged woman's case.

A petition by the Florida Department of Children and Families said a neurologist who examined Schiavo's medical records found she was "most likely in a state of minimal consciousness" rather than the persistent vegetative state previous doctors have diagnosed.

The agency's petition also alleges that 30 "detailed allegations of abuse, neglect or exploitation" have been made against Michael Schiavo, Terri's husband and legal guardian, including a failure to provide his wife with adequate therapy.

The motion states that the agency has a duty to investigate and asks Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge George Greer to order Schiavo's feeding tube reinserted.

Previous allegations of abuse have been investigated and dismissed during the 15 years Terri Schiavo has been incapacitated.

Her fate has been the subject of a legal and moral tug-of-war between her husband and her parents, Mary and Bob Schindler, for the past seven years.

Michael Schiavo has said his wife told him she would not want to be kept alive in her current state, but her parents say their daughter would never have said such a thing and that she could improve with treatment.

Earlier Wednesday, Greer barred Florida authorities from removing the brain-damaged woman from the hospice where she lay. He is the same judge who ordered her feeding tube disconnected last week.

The moves were the latest in a dizzying series of legal maneuvers launched at the state and federal levels to prolong Schiavo's life.

Even President Bush, Congress and the U.S. Justice Department got involved. Bush signed a bill passed by Congress on Monday that pushed the issue from state courts to federal courts. And the Justice Department filed three "statements of interest" supporting the parents in each court action.

The president's brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, has vowed to do "everything within my power" to restore Schiavo's feeding tube.

But a federal district court in Tampa and an appeals court in Atlanta have refused to intervene, denying requests by the Schindlers to restore their daughter's feeding tube.

In addition, Wednesday, the Florida Senate rejected 18-21 a bill that would have restored Schiavo's feeding tube. The bill would have prohibited the withdrawal of food and water from any patient in a persistent vegetative state who had not filled out a living will.

By Wednesday afternoon, the governor argued that new information suggests Schiavo's condition might have been misdiagnosed, and that she may not be in a persistent vegetative state after all.

"This new information raises serious concerns and warrants immediate action," Bush told reporters.

Official with Christian bioethics group
In the affidavit filed on behalf of the state, Dr. William Cheshire, a board-certified neurologist at the Mayo Clinic, stated that his review of Schiavo raises "serious doubt" about the current diagnosis. He said she displayed "context-specific" reactions to stimuli, such as upbeat music, colorful objects or the arrival of people into the room.

Although describing some of those responses as "ambiguous," Cheshire wrote, "I could not withhold life-sustaining nutrition from this beautiful lady whose face brightens in the presence of others."

Cheshire said he reviewed Schiavo's medical records, watched videotapes and observed her at the Pinellas Park hospice earlier this month.

But he was unable to directly examine her, Department of Children and Families Secretary Lucy Hadi told reporters.

Cheshire is also director of biotech ethics at the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity, a group founded in 1994 to recognize the contribution of "biblical values" to the bioethical debate.

Greer, the Florida judge whose decision is being awaited Thursday, has also reviewed medical records and videotapes and, in 2002, rejected arguments put forth by doctors chosen by Schiavo's parents that she was not in a persistent vegetative state.

Three other doctors -- two chosen by Schiavo's husband, Michael, and one chosen by the court -- concluded she was in a persistent vegetative state.

Terri Schiavo suffered profound brain damage in 1990, when her heart stopped temporarily, perhaps because of an eating disorder. Since then, she has been kept alive by round-the-clock care.



My Bad....I thought the interference was over....never underestimate the powers of the self-righteous :'(us