Terri Schiavo Case Update Page

Theresa Marie Schindler Schiavo v. Michael Schiavo 05-11556 05-00530 CV-T-27-TBM 03-23-2005

Empire Journal - Mar 05 - ..Perhaps the reason that all attempts for a criminal investigation into the alleged attempted abuse and homicide of Terri Schindler Schiavo have been stonewalled lays in the 1996 election of campaign of Shames---the former president of the Local St. Pet. Bar Association who had inside, privileged information concerning the Schiavo case.

According to the records of the Florida Division of Elections, current Attorney General Charlie Crist made two contributions to the Shames campaign totaling $300 at the time he was a member of the Florida Senate and chairman of the Senate Appropriations Criminal Justice subcommittee. Crist has been conspicuously absent from the Schiavo case in the last several months. It has been proven that he lied to the public at a press conference when asked about an investigation concerning abuse of Terri Schiavo when he claimed no allegations had ever been received by his office.

The Empire Journal has also learned that Glenn Woodworth, one of the attorneys who represented Michael Schiavo in his medical malpractice claim, was also a contributor to Shames’ 1996 judicial campaign as well as Pamela Campbell, the attorney who represented the Schindlers’ at the January, 2000 trial and who allegedly committed the fatal error in the case, the basis for the denial of all future appeals.

Election records also show that Shames accepted campaign donations from Joseph Fleece, law partner of Hamden Baskin III, co-counsel with Felos in the case; and from Devito and Higham, the law firm which represents the St. Pet. and Venice Roman Catholic dioceses. Each also contributed to the election campaigns of George W. Greer. http://www.theempirejournal.com/030105091_schiavo
judge_greer_su.htm

The election records also indicate that Shames did not legally obtain judicial office as he failed to qualify by the required date, the same as George Greer failed to qualify for office and could not have legally appeared on the ballot. Therefore, in that Shames did not legally qualify for office, the order authorizing the entry of Felos into the case and the payment of over $500,000 to him in legal fees from Terri’s trust fund is allegedly fraudulent and without jurisdiction.

Doctors warn over right-to-life

BBC - May 16/05 - A judge's ruling on the rights of terminally-ill patients could put doctors in an "impossibly difficult" position, the GMC has told a court.
Leslie Burke who has a degenerative brain condition, won a landmark ruling last year to stop doctors withdrawing food and drink when he cannot speak.

The 45-year-old feared General Medical Council rules on artificial nutrition may allow his wishes to be over-ruled.

But the GMC has taken it to the Court of Appeal as it wants clearer guidance.

Artificial nutrition is classed as a form of treatment by the GMC and, therefore, last July's ruling, which was hailed as a breakthrough for the rights of terminally-ill patients, raised questions about medical intervention.

Harmful

Philip Havers, QC, representing the GMC, said the original ruling fundamentally altered the nature of doctor / patient relationships and was not in the best interests of the patient.

He said doctors would have to provide treatment which they knew would be of no benefit or could even be harmful.

Mr Havers said such a conclusion "puts the doctor in an impossibly difficult position, for a doctor should never be required to provide a particular form of treatment to a patient which he does not consider clinically appropriate."

He added there could come a time - many years ahead - when Mr Burke may find himself in circumstances where it would be better for artificial nutrition to be withdrawn.

Full Story Here

'Why I fear for my future'

BBC- Feb 04 - Les Burke, 44, from Lancaster who has a degenerative brain condition is fighting guidelines to withdraw food and fluid should he deteriorate.
Former postman Mr Burke, who was diagnosed in 1984, knows one day he will lose the power of speech and control of his limbs.

He believes General Medical Council guidelines could see him starve while his mind was still intact.

A disability rights adviser, he is seeking a High Court judicial review.

Quite often because I use a wheelchair I have been spoken over, spoken at and spoken about as if I was not in the room.

There have been many occasions people have done what they thought was in my best interests but have not asked me.

Doctors believe it would be in my best interests if they withdrew food and fluid when my condition cerebella ataxia deteriorates.

I have the genetic version and my younger brother Robert who is 43 also has the condition. He was diagnosed at the same time as me in 1984.

There is no cure. There are certain things that can slow it down.

Full Story Here

Out of Touch !!! Bush Declines to Endorse DeLay's Comments

Fri Apr 8/05 - White House - AP

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE - President Bush on Friday said he supports "an independent judiciary" and declined to endorse comments by House Majority Tom DeLay that were critical of judges.

"I believe in proper checks and balances," Bush said.

The president, speaking with reporters as he flew to Texas from Rome, where he attended the funeral of Pope John Paul II, was reacting to statements made after the death of Terri Schiavo.

DeLay, R-Texas, suggested an impeachment case could made against judges who rebuffed Congress' will in the Schiavo case. As the severely brain-damaged Florida woman faded, Congress passed a law allowing federal courts to review the decisions of state judges who turned down her parents' efforts to resume her feeding. But federal judges all the way up to the Supreme Court held up those decisions.

"The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior," DeLay said when Schiavo died.

Full Story Here

Unremorseful and Out of Touch !!!: U.S. Senate Leader Bill Frist Says Courts in Schiavo Case Acted Fairly (!!!???)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - April 3/05 - U.S. Senate Republican leader Bill Frist said on Tuesday that courts had acted fairly in the Terri Schiavo "right-to-die" case, differing sharply from a vow of retribution by his House of Representatives counterpart, Tom DeLay.

"I believe we have a fair and independent judiciary today," said Frist, now trying to resolve a battle with Democrats over judicial nominations that threatens to tie his chamber into knots. "I respect that."

Frist and DeLay, as the Senate and House majority leaders, had led a charge for legislation calling on the federal courts to review the Schiavo case.

But the federal courts refused to intervene and let stand a Florida state court order to remove a feeding tube from the brain-damaged woman. Schiavo's husband had said she would not have wanted to live in her condition, but her parents fought against the tube's removal.

Schiavo died last week after spending 15 years in what courts had ruled was a persistent vegetative state.

DeLay, a Texas Republican, vowed shortly afterward: "We will look at an arrogant, out-of-control, unaccountable judiciary that thumbed their nose at the Congress and president when given jurisdiction to hear this case anew."

In a written statement, DeLay said: "The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior."

Frist, asked about the furor over the case, told reporters, "I will let members (of Congress) ... speak for themselves."

But the Tennessee Republican said he believed the courts "acted in a fair and independent way."

The Schiavo case was unique, Frist said. "Our bill said, 'let's let the courts take another look,"' he said.

Polls - [which were skewed, biased and misleading ] - showed most Americans opposed congressional intervention, and a federal appeals court judge criticized Congress and Bush for acting "at odds" with the Constitution.

The Schiavo case has further stirred passions that have built in a more than 4-year-old battle over Bush's judicial nominations.

Christian conservatives say the case underscores the need to put more conservatives on the federal bench, but others from across the political spectrum say the case shows the courts are needed as a check on legislative excess.

Note: What the Article omits is the Hidden Agenda of Senate Leader Bill Frist: It is not the fact that he is already a multi-millionaire many times over. It is that his family are the OWNERS of the LARGEST H.M.O (Health Maintenance Organization) - IN THE WORLD

Making others pay for standing up for Terri Shiavo: Note: The first Political Fallout from this case will be that Democrats will go after House leader Tom DeLay for making them look bad.

GULFPORT, Fla. (AP) - April 5/05 - With the family as deeply divided as ever, Terri Schiavo's parents arranged a funeral Mass for her Tuesday night, while her husband held on to her cremated remains and planned a separate service.

Schiavo's parents had opposed her cremation and hoped to bury her in their adopted state of Florida.

But her husband, Michael Schiavo, ordered her cremation and said her ashes will be buried in his family's plot in Pennsylvania, the state where Terri Schiavo grew up and met her future husband.

Michael Schiavo has not said when his memorial service will be held, but is under a court order to notify the parents of his plans. Schiavo's attorney, George Felos, did not return a call Tuesday for comment.

The 41-year-old brain-damaged woman died Thursday after a long, bitter legal battle between her husband and parents.

Court-appointed doctors said she was in a persistent vegetative state, and Michael Schiavo said his wife would not want to be kept alive artificially.

Her parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, doubted she had such end-of-life wishes and also disputed that she was in a persistent vegetative state. They claimed she laughed, cried, interacted with them and tried to speak.

The dramatic case reached all the way to Congress, the U.S. Supreme Court, the Vatican and White House in recent weeks as the Schindlers tried to block the court order that allowed Michael Schiavo to remove the feeding tube.

SMH - Australia - (AP) - Ap 3/05 - Terri Schiavo's body has been cremated as disagreements continued between her husband and her parents, who were unable to have their own independent expert observe her autopsy.

Mrs Schiavo's cremation took place on Saturday, but plans to bury her ashes in Pennsylvania, where she grew up, have not yet been completed, her husband's lawyer, George Felos said.

Mrs Schiavo, 41, died on Thursday after the removal of the feeding tube that had kept her alive since 1990.

Anger at Mr Schiavo's actions has been fuelled by his refusal to give the Schindlers a share of the ashes or even a lock of their daughter's hair.

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Ap 3/05 - Terri Schiavo's body was cremated Saturday as disagreements continued between her husband and her parents, who were unable to have their own independent expert observe her autopsy.

The cremation was carried out according to a court order issued Tuesday establishing that Michael Schiavo had the right to make such decisions, said his lawyer, George Felos. He said plans for burying her ashes in Pennsylvania, where she grew up, had not yet been completed.

Terri Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, had wanted to bury their daughter in Pinellas County so they could visit her grave.

Terri Schiavo, 41, died Thursday after the removal of the feeding tube that had kept her alive since 1990, when she suffered brain damage that court-appointed doctors determined had placed her in a persistent vegetative state. Her parents had fought in court to keep her alive, disputing the doctors' opinions and saying there was hope of improvement.

The Schindlers plan to have their own memorial service Tuesday at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church in Gulfport.

The Schindlers had sought to have independent medical experts observe their daughter's autopsy at the Pinellas County Medical Examiner's office, but the agency refused their request, family attorneys David Gibbs III and Barbara Weller said Saturday.

The autopsy was completed Friday, the day after Terri Schiavo died, and results are not expected for several weeks.

Ap 3/05 -AP - We don't want to get into the politics of the right or the left or whomever," said Michael Donnelly at the Disability Rights Center of Kansas. "This isn't about politics, this is about how we value or don't value the lives people with disabilities have."

His group had been working for years to revisit the issue, and came together with several conservative legislators to move the bill forward. Elsewhere, the National Right to Life Committee has produced model legislation and is working with legislators in several states.

Legislation has also been introduced in Alabama, Hawaii, Louisiana, Minnesota and South Dakota. The Louisiana bill is called the "Human Dignity Act"; Alabama's is the "Starvation and Dehydration Prevention Act."

Many measures predate recent weeks of attention to Schiavo, though some drew their inspiration directly from the agonized public debate over the 41-year-old woman's death — like one in Missouri introduced last Thursday, the day Schiavo died.

"I was gripped by what I was watching and couldn't believe the state of Florida would let this woman die in this manner," said GOP state Rep. Cynthia Davis. Her bill would bar anyone from directing that artificial food and water be withheld or withdrawn without a specific written directive from the patient.

NURSE TURNED BIOETHECIST LAMENTS SCHIAVO STARVATION

By Mark Ellis
Senior Correspondent, ASSIST News Service

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA (ANS) -Fri/ Mar 25/05 - The glory of Easter was tarnished this week by a judicial wall of opposition to the right to life movement, as Terri Shiavo was starved to death at her husband’s wishes in a heartbreaking spectacle that gripped the nation.

“We are saddened by what is happening,” says Jennifer Lahl, national director of the Center for Bioethics and Culture (CBC). Lahl was a pediatric nurse for 18 years before she founded the CBC. “As a former nurse I can’t imagine what it’s like to be the caregiver at Schiavo’s bedside,” she says. “She’s being starved while her parents try every possible tool to save her life.” (Pictured: Jennifer Lahl).

While experts debated whether or not Schiavo was in a persistent vegetative state, other aspects of her medical condition were beyond dispute. “This is not a woman who was terminal,” Lahl notes. Other than her brain injury, Schiavo was a healthy woman who did not require machines such as a ventilator, heart machine or kidney dialysis equipment to sustain her life.

“She hasn’t had a neurological exam in three years,” Lahl says. “That’s just bad medical care,” she says, noting that swift changes are taking place in medical technology. “There are so many mysteries about the brain and consciousness. We think we understand what these people hear or express, but we have to admit we don’t really know.”

Schivo’s parents remained convinced that with the proper therapy, their daughter could swallow on her own, eliminating the need for a feeding tube at all. John Grogan, of the Philadelphia Inquirer, raises this uncomfortable question: “If Schiavo merely required spoon feeding instead of tube feeding, would anyone seriously be arguing to withhold food and water? Does not every human, no matter how incapacitated, deserve sustenance?”

The Schiavo case has caused renewed interest in living wills, as people attempt to prescribe the manner of their end-of-life care. “I recognize God as the giver and author of life,” Lahl says. “I don’t want to die on my own terms, but on God’s terms—when He calls me home.” She believes the necessity for living wills came about as society turned away from Christian values, and people assumed a ‘radical autonomy.’

“If we promoted and celebrated life we wouldn’t need living wills,” Lahl notes. Lahl has a durable power of attorney naming her husband—a pastor—as her proxy to make these decisions in the event she might become incapacitated.

She doesn’t believe Christians need to utilize every new medical advance to sustain life. “We don’t have to buy into every medical treatment known to man,” Lahl notes. “If you’re full of cancer a Christian can say no to chemotherapy.” Lahl has been at many bedsides where the family—and doctors—found that documents such as living wills proved to be fallible.

Many were upset at the events taking place during the holiest of weeks for Christian believers. “This is so sad this is the 21st Century in America.”

Although Terri's case has been rejected by the Court of Appeals (11th Circuit)

Governor JEB BUSH (Florida) has the Power and Legal Authority to take Terri Schiavo into Protective Custody and to save her life until the case can be reviewed. Jeb Bush was contacted by Pro-Life Constituents who were outside of his office, but Jeb Bush REFUSED TO MEET WITH THEM.

We hope that you did try to Contact Jeb Bush and ask Him to take Terri Schiavo into Protective Custody. It is not that politicians do not know what is the Right thing to do. It is rather that they do not want to do what is right. If there is any mistake, Err on the side of Life.

1. Some in the Media ignores the Story, unless forced to address it due to Blogging & Alternate media

2. Some in the Media covers the story, but ignores the facts of the case by refusing to present them

4. Some in the Media confuse the public by constantly suggesting/implying that Terri Schiavo is in a Persistent Vegetative State

5. Some in the Media ignores the impact of pro-life voters and do not address the repercussions for the future of the Terri Schiavo case.

6. Moral Equivalency: "All sides Must be Equal", so those who want to Kill are given the same amount of airtime (or more) as those who want Terri to live - but without taking a moral position

8. Some in the Media will not cover the Florida State Bill that can still save the life of Terri Schiavo

9. Some in the Media will not discuss the implications of judges who are clearly pro-death/pro-Euthanasia.

10. Some in the Media will give constant coverage to WRONG and INNACURATE polls that are very skewed and deliberately biased through the questions that are asked.

11. Some in the Media continues to cover only a Select use of the facts, and attempts to drive the agenda of the story.

12. Some of the media reporters do not join coverage that is pro-life. Taking an approach that is in favor of life usually results in Reporters being Fired.

13. Some in the Media will not report the conflict of interest between the role of the Judge as Guardian, but also sitting in judgement on this case.

[Note: Please do not suggest that ALL members of the media follow these guidelines. That is obviously not the case, and there are many members of the Media with deep integrity]

Remember how some of the media deals with Freedom: they use their own Freedom often to the detriment of the average people that they claim to be informing.

An example of this is the National U.S. & International Media that covered Saddam Hussein for so many years.

They knew the conditions in the country (Iraq), they knew that the situation there for the people was one of dire suffering and constant oppression. But in order to gain access, they insisted on often portraying Saddam as someone who only MIGHT be harming his people. This was not only an example of sloppy reporting, it was also an example of accepting the Oppression of others in order to increase their ratings. Most reporters were only too happy to report the "Good" [inacurate] news about Saddam, in exchange for their air-conditioned rooms as the Hotels in Baghdad.

The Role of the Standard Media is not to Inform. Many of them work for mulinational corporations that tend to monitor the news contents closely. The Role of the Media most of the time is to Persuade the People that "everything is okay" and "everyone can go back to sleep". If the Regular Media was doing its job, the Alternative media would not exist since there would be no demand for it.

The Terri Schiavo Case confirms that the courts in America have been overtaken by judges who do not care about the people that they claim to serve. Most of their rulings are done against the people, and against the interests of the people.

It is only with much more citizen participation, and much more direct and personal involvement, that the people even have a chance of making a difference. The control over the court system by the Culture of Death is so prevalent and so complete that the only possible reversal is a personal long term commitment by those who are in favor of the culture of life. While we applaud those who take steps to save life and save lives, the political and organizing skills of the pro-life community leaves a GREAT DEAL to be desired.

Without more effective tactics and organizations, those who are pro-life will be overun by those who already hold the keys of power on the American political landscape. Add to that the length of time that it takes pro lifers to be motivated and actually be involved and one can understand that these kinds of battles are much more likely to be very long, and very prolonged, and take a great deal of effort.

Whatever battles are not fought when those battles are small, are the same battles that will have to be fought when they are much bigger. Most Americans are far too committed to their own leisure and pleasure to be willing to make the sustained effort and commitment that it takes to make a difference.

The Culture of Death advocates know this, and therefore understand that their main strategy is simply to out-wait and out-last those who claim to be pro-life.

It's very easy to read a few webpages, and think of THAT as "involvement". No, that is Not what involvement is. Involvement is making a commitment and taking your time and resources and investing them in the cause that you SAY that you claim to believe in. It is investing in your country because it is the right thing to do. It is a sustained and long-term effort. THAT - is what "getting involved" means.

Many people like to think that they don't have the time. But the truth is that all of us make time for what we wish to make time for. We demonstrate our priority and what we actually value by the choices we make of where to place our time and our funds.

WASHINGTON -Mar 30/05 - The Supreme Court on Wednesday once again refused to order Terri Schiavo's feeding tube reinserted, dealing another blow to her parents' attempts to keep their severely brain-damaged daughter alive.

The decision, announced in a one-sentence order, was the sixth time since 2000 that the court declined to intervene in the case. Justices did not explain their decision and there was no indication how they voted.

It was also the second time in a week that the high court refused to reinsert the tube. Justices on March 24 denied the parents' emergency request based on similar claims that husband Michael Schiavo did not have her consent to remove the tube.

The feeding tube that has been keeping Schiavo alive at a hospice in Pinellas Park, Fla., was removed March 18. Doctors at the time said that unless it is reinserted she likely would die within two weeks.

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - Mar 28/05 - Their hopes fading and legal options exhausted, Terri Schiavo's parents appeared quietly resigned Sunday to watching her die but could claim one Easter victory: The severely brain-damaged woman received a drop of communion wine on her tongue — her only sustenance in nine days — after her husband allowed her to receive the sacrament.

Outside the hospice where Schiavo is being cared for, five protesters were arrested, and about a half-dozen people in wheelchairs got out of them and lay in the driveway, shouting "We're not dead yet!"

Schiavo's husband, who a day earlier denied a request from his wife's parents that she be given communion, granted permission Sunday to offer the sacrament.

The Rev. Thaddeus Malanowski said he gave Schiavo wine but could not give her a fleck of communion bread because her tongue was dry. He also administered the last rites, anointing her with holy oil and giving a blessing. Schiavo last received both sacraments on March 18, just before her feeding tube was removed.

The priest's announcement drew applause and cheers from the crowd, which spent most of the day heckling police and protesting...

ATLANTA - Mar 22/05 - A federal appeals court refused early Wednesday to order the reinsertion of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube, denying an emergency request by the severely brain-damaged woman's parents.

The three-judge panel ruled 2-1 to deny the request, a day after a federal judge in Florida also refused a similar appeal.

Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, vowed yet another appeal Wednesday.

"The Schindlers will be filing an appropriate appeal to save their daughter's life," said Rex Sparklin, an attorney with the law firm representing the parents.

Mar 22/05 - PINELLAS PARK, United States (AFP) - Conservatives opposed to letting Terri Schiavo -- the brain-damaged woman whose feeding tube was removed by court order -- die are urging the Florida state legislature to intervene following a setback in federal court.

Doctors say Terri Schiavo, 41, has been in a persistent vegetative state for 15 years since heart failure caused several brain damage. [Note: THAT IS A LIE !] A judge ordered her feeding tube removed on Friday.

Her husband, Michael Schiavo, has said she should be allowed to die. For seven years Schiavo's parents have fought the husband's wishes, insisting that she can recover.

A federal judge Tuesday rejected a last minute bid by Terri Schiavo's parents to have a feeding tube reinserted to prevent her death. The parents have appealed the ruling to a federal appeals court in Atlanta.

"We only need one vote in the (Florida state) Senate to save my daughter," said Terri Schiavo's mother, Mary Schindler, speaking outside the hospice where her daughter is kept. "Please senators, I'm begging you, please dont let my daughter die."

Schindler was flanked by Terri Schiavo's father, Bob Schindler, and her sister, Suzanne Vitadamo.

Scores of protesters have gathered at the hospice where she is being kept to strategize on ways to get the state legislature to intervene in the case.

Police have reinforced security around the hospice, blocking all entry points and registering everyone who enters the site. They handcuffed and arrested a woman protester who tried to enter the hospital with bottled water.

NRTL - Mar 22/05 - Judge Whittemore’s ruling refusing to feed Terri while a full trial is conducted in federal court flouts the clear intent of Congress in passing the Federal Terri’s Law. It is based on a clear legal error which must immediately be reversed by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

The federal law explicitly instructs the court, “In such a suit, the District Court shall determine de novo any claim of a violation of any right of Theresa Marie Schiavo within the scope of this Act, notwithstanding any prior State court determination and regardless of whether such a claim has previously been raised, considered, or decided in State court proceedings.”

Despite this, Judge Whittemore’s conclusion that the Schindlers do not have a “substantial likelihood of success on the merits” and therefore are not entitled to a temporary restraining order to feed Terri is based entirely on his judgment about the adequacy and accuracy of the state court proceedings.

There has obviously been no time even to detail for the federal court the specific constitutional and federal statutory claims the statute directs it to hear, let alone to conduct a trial. The Senators and Representatives who crafted and voted to enact the Federal Terri’s Law repeatedly emphasized, during its consideration in Congress, that it would be inconceivable that a federal court, directed to conduct a new proceeding fully to determine Terri’s rights, would not re-insert the feeding tube for the duration of those proceedings. The inconceivable has happened, and obviously should immediately be corrected by the appellate court.

BESIDES CONTACTING YOUR LEGISLATORS, HOW CAN YOU HELP TO SAVE TERRI SCHINDLER-SCHIAVO?

Things that each of us can do to help save Terri Schindler-Schiavo:

1) Pray for Terri, for her family and for those who have dedicated their time and talents to helping her plight.

2) If you have relatives or friends who live in Florida, contact them ASAP and ask them to write or call their legislators.

3) Monitor your local media coverage of Terri’s case to ensure that the press reports her condition accurately. Due to media distortions on Terri’s condition, many people think that Terri Schiavo is in a coma, when in fact, Terri appears alert and aware and she responds to her family. If you come across an inaccuracy, please take the time to call or email the media outlet and ask them to issue a correction.

There is currently (Mar 22/05) a Bill in the Florida legislature that is only waiting for THREE (3) Legislators to Act that STILL would save the life of Terri Schindler-Schiavo

MYTH: Terri Schiavo is in a coma or in a comatose-state.

FACT: Some claim that Terri Schiavo is in a persistent-vegetative state, while many doctors and medical professional disagree and believe that Terri is very aware of her surroundings. No doctors or medical professionals who have personally examined her claim that Terri is in a coma.

MYTH: Terri Schiavo is dying and her family refuses to “let her go.”

FACT: Terri is not “dying.” In fact, she is a healthy woman who happens to have a disability. Terri is brain-damaged but she is not dying of any terminal illness and is not being sustained through a respirator. She breathes on her own and merely receives her food and hydration through a feeding tube. Terri’s family is asking to be given legal guardianship so that they may love and care for her.

MYTH: Death by starvation and dehydration is painless.

FACT: It is upsetting to note that Florida law does not allow a dog to be subjected to a death by starvation so why would should Terri, a human being be sentenced to such a death?
St. Louis neurologist William Burke said:
"A conscious [cognitively disabled] person would feel it just as you or I would. They will go into seizures. Their skin cracks, their tongue cracks, their lips crack. They may have nosebleeds because of the drying of the mucus membranes, and heaving and vomiting might ensue because of the drying out of the stomach lining. They feel the pangs of hunger and thirst. Imagine going one day without a glass of water! Death by dehydration takes ten to fourteen days. It is an extremely agonizing death."

Mar 22/05 - U.S. District Judge James Whittemore has defied Congress by not staying Terri Schiavo's starvation execution for the time it takes him to hold a full hearing on her case, a leading Republican senator said Tuesday.

"You have judicial tyranny here," Santorum told WABC Radio in New York. "Congress passed a law that said that you had to look at this case. He simply thumbed his nose at Congress."

Judge George W. Greer ignores Florida laws, orders premeditated killing of disabled Florida woman by her husband.

Clearwater, FL – On Tuesday and Wednesday, March 8 and 9, 2005, Sixth Circuit Judge George W. Greer issued three orders that all but assure the death of Terri Schiavo, beginning on Friday, March 18, 2005.

Order Denying Food and Fluids Naturally After Gastric Tube Removal
Greer ordered that the family of Terri Schiavo may not introduce oral nutrition and hydration following the removal of Terri’s gastric feeding tube. Florida Statute 744.3215 (Rights of Persons Determined Incapacitated) require that incapacitated persons cannot be deprived of necessary services including food and water. Ordering that Terri Schiavo may not receive nutrition or hydration naturally is against the law, in the opinion of the Foundation.

Order Denying Updated Medical Tests
Greer ordered that no further neurological tests may be offered to Terri Schiavo, utilizing functional MRI to determine if she is in a ‘persistent vegetative state’ (As Greer found in 2002) or is her condition is ‘minimally conscious’. Florida Statute 765.404 which defines persistent vegetative state require that the condition be determined and diagnosed as permanent prior to the withdrawal of life-prolonging means. Further, Florida Statute 765.309 prevents mercy killing and assisted suicide. Without determining the true neurological condition of Terri Schiavo prior to the withdrawal of foods and fluids, the Foundation finds Judge Greer’s Order to remove Nutrition and Hydration a directive for her guardian to commit either a mercy killing or assisted suicide.

Order Denying Relief from Judgment
Greer denied an order from judgment based on his error in dismissing pertinent testimony in 2000 that would assist the court in determining Terri Schiavo’s true end of life wishes. Under Florida Statute 765.404, clear and convincing evidence of the ward’s intent for medical treatment must be established. The only evidence in support of removing Terri’s feeding tube was the self-serving hearsay testimony of her guardian (which is not admissible under FS 90.602) and hearsay from two members of his immediate family. Greer systematically ruled that testimony from Terri’s friends and family was unreliable or not credible. His failure to consider all evidence of Terri Schiavo’s attitudes towards life-prolonging measures, in the Foundation’s opinion, is a clear violation of Florida Statutes.

XOFC takes this opportunity to thank Catholics and Protestants who have tried to make an effort, and because of their beliefs, have stood up in the fight for a

Mar 22/05 - If the tragic case of Terri Schiavo shows nothing else, it shows how easily "the right to die" can become the right to kill. It is hard to believe that anyone, regardless of their position on euthanasia, would have chosen the agony of starvation and dehydration as the way to end someone's life.

A New York Times headline on March 20th tried to assure us: "Experts Say Ending Feeding Can Lead to a Gentle Death" but you can find experts to say anything. In a December 2, 2002 story in the same New York Times, people starving in India were reported as dying, "often clutching pained stomachs."

No murderer would be allowed to be killed this way, which would almost certainly be declared "cruel and unusual punishment," in violation of the Constitution, by virtually any court.

Mar 22/05 - Just what is it that so earnestly motivates those who zealously want Terri Schiavo's feeding tube to be removed? While there are plenty of exceptions, I dare say that most people in this camp are not driven by constitutional concerns, despite their hollow protests to the contrary.

As my brother Rush cogently noted, it is easy to understand what drives those who want to save Terri's life: the human urge to protect and save the life of another human being. The motivation of those fighting with equal fervor to remove the tube is not so self-evident.

The more I read about this case, the more it weighs on me -- the more a creeping feeling of horror sweeps over me. If, in fact, Terri Schiavo wants to live and is going to be denied that right, the prospect of a court-ordered removal of her feeding tube is no less horrifying than that of a person being buried alive.

Renowned neurologist: Schiavo can eat with aid & is not in ‘persistent vegetative state’

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. (BP)-Mar 21/05 - A doctor close to the Terri Schiavo case told the Florida Baptist Witness that the 41-year-old disabled woman could actually be fed orally if it were allowed.

"The important thing for people to understand is that she can eat and swallow right now,” said William Hammesfahr, a neurologist who has examined Schiavo. He is in many of the videos circulated through the news media showing that Schiavo is at times responsive and aware.

"They are truly withholding food from a person who is awake, alert, and can eat and swallow,” Hammesfahr said. After spending at least 10 hours with Schiavo several years ago, he told Florida Judge George W. Greer that she can improve with therapy.

Hammesfahr said his credibility had been questioned at the time, but he has since been vindicated in court and currently maintains a thriving private practice in Clearwater, Fla. Despite reports attacking him, he said he has never lost his license to practice medicine and currently is involved in litigation surrounding the ordeal.

Hammesfahr was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology in 1999 for his work in brain injury and stroke. He is a recognized expert in treating neurological disorders, having successfully treated thousands of patients using vasodilator therapy, which increases blood flow to the brain, thus healing conditions previously thought to be untreatable.

Standing with a handful of supporters outside of the hospice late in the evening Mar. 19, Hammesfahr told the Witness Schiavo previously has swallowed pudding and daily swallows almost two liters of water by virtue of being able to process her own saliva and sinus drainage.

"That’s liquid and that’s the most difficult thing to swallow," Hammesfahr said of her saliva. "If she can swallow that she can swallow food or pudding."

Other doctors who testified before Greer in 2003 had limited exposure to Schiavo and did not complete standard evaluations for brain injuries, Hammesfahr said. The court-appointed doctors maintained Schiavo is in a persistent vegetative state (PVS), with no chance for recovery.

"Terri’s not that bad," Hammesfahr said. "She is like a child with cerebral palsy. She can speak. At least when I saw her, she would speak very slowly. She would sort of form words, she would move her arms and legs at command. She could understand questions in English.”

Hammesfahr said there are at least 50 physicians he knows of, in private practice and related to medical universities who have said Schiavo is not in a PVS or in a coma.

Townhall - Mar 21/05 - The efforts to end the life of Theresa “Terri” Schiavo have come to our national center stage. Members of Congress returned to Washington in order to pass bipartisan legislation protecting Terri. President Bush returned from vacation to sign it. Why is ending or preserving the life of one disabled woman of such great political importance? Not since Elian Gonzales was refused refuge and liberty in the United States and returned to Cuba has there been such a public concern over the life of one person.

(AgapePress) - Mar 22/05 - Shock and unbelief. That's how the loved ones of Terri Schiavo are reacting to a judge's decision early on Tuesday to deny food and water to Terri.

In Tampa, U.S. District Judge James Whittemore has refused a request by Terri Schiavo's parents that the feeding tube that has kept their brain-damaged daughter alive be re-inserted. She has been without food or water since a state court ordered the tube removed last Friday afternoon. Doctors have said Schiavo might only live a week or two without it.

The lawyer for Terri Schiavo's parents has told a federal judge that forcing the woman to die by starvation and dehydration would be "a mortal sin" under her Roman Catholic beliefs. Attorney David Gibbs told Whittemore, "It is a complete violation to her rights and to her religious liberty to force her in a position of refusing nutrition." But Whittemore told Gibbs that he did not see "a substantial likelihood" of the parents' lawsuit succeeding.

A woman outside Terri Schiavo's Florida hospice calls Whittemore's decision "terrible." In her words, "They're going to talk and talk and she's going to die."

Terri Schiavo's brother, Bobby Schindler, tells NBC the ruling leaves him "at a loss for words." Schindler says it is "barbaric" that his sister is being "slowly starved to death for no reason." He says what is happening is "not Terri's will" and that she should be given an attorney.

Bob and Mary Schindler have appealed Whittemore's ruling to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, asking that the court issue an immediate injunction allowing their daughter's feeding tube to be reinserted before she dies.

An advocate for the disabled says there is a lot of misinformation being spread around in the midst of all the reporting on the Terri Schiavo case. Marcia Roth is a spokesperson for the National Spinal Cord Injury Association. She says the misrepresentation of the struggle to keep the Florida woman alive is shameful.

"They have portrayed the debate as right-wing, religious conservatives versus the political left," she says. "They have ignored the 17 national disability rights organizations that have filed three amicus briefs about the denials of due process that may lead to a disabled woman's death. We stand firmly in support of the legal rights of all people with disabilities."

Roth says the disabled community in the U.S. is fearful that court-ordered starvation deaths could occur more frequently if a "quality of life" standard is established for all people.

McCabe rejects deal for help with corruption case

LARGO -Aug 30/00- Peter A. Christopoulos, a Tampa Bay area restaurateur whose gambling addiction landed him in prison, wants to be set free early.

If they freed him by cutting four years off his prison term, Christopoulos said, he would help them build criminal cases against corrupt Tampa Bay area politicians with organized crime connections.

Two Florida Department of Law Enforcement agents say Christopoulos, serving a 51/2-year term, may have deep mob contacts.

And court records show they are eager to use information Christopoulos gives them to investigate his allegations.

Guarding the Guardians
The Pinellas County judiciary pushes more secrecy surrounding guardianships

Gulf Coast Bus.Rev - Ap 30/04 - When Melton didn't respond directly, Grossman repeated himself. "Do you understand that order is not in compliance with Florida statute?" Grossman asked Melton. "Florida statute provides that those records are confidential and are only available to guardians, guardians' attorneys, the court's attorneys, or other persons as determined by the court."

Alvarez, in his 1990 order, acknowledged as much. But Alvarez also noted that the statute "permits the court of jurisdiction to order otherwise." Then, Alvarez proceeded to order otherwise for all 13th Circuit guardianships. The 14-year-old order stands to this day. DeBlaker and Alvarez served together on an earlier state panel that examined guardianship law in Florida.

Her home county has historically resisted guardianship reform, says Alvarez, who now specializes in guardianship and trust law in private practice. "Pinellas has always been a problem," Alvarez says. "I don't know why."

Ron Stuart, a spokesman for Demers, told GCBR after the hearing that the chief judge simply wants DeBlaker and her auditors to follow the law.

"Absurd" was the reaction of George W. Greer, a Pinellas circuit judge who hears probate cases, to Melton's proposal for more openness in guardianships.

Millions of dollars of federal funding - privatize the division of vocational rehabilitation

CHAOS AT THE CAPITOL 3: Thousands of people with disabilities are caught in the middle of a Tallahassee tug-o-war.
It's a fight between the state and the federal government. With millions of dollars of federal funding at stake FOX13 investigative reporter Glenn Selig has been exposing how Floridians with disabilities are caught up in capitol chaos. The federal government can still cut off $100-million dollars in funding if the state fails to produce a detailed plan to back up its plans to privatize the division of vocational rehabilitation. Rehabilitation services administration director Dr. Fred Schroeder attended a meeting of the commission which is overseeing the privatization effort in Orlando.

EastBay Business Times -Nov 16/01- An Oakland-based maker of voting equipment is fighting to save $15 million in Florida orders after county officials there learned a company executive has been indicted in connection with kickbacks to an election official in Louisiana.

Pinellas County, FL, To Install Public Surveillence Cameras Tied To Driver's License Bureau

Tampa City Council took a fully-informed look at Ybor City's controversial high-tech face-scanning software this afternoon.

July 19/01 - BayNews - The council held a public hearing on the matter and there was emotional debate on both sides of the issue. When the dust settled, the council split down the middle with a 3-3 vote on whether or not to do away with the face-scanning software. The deciding vote will be cast by Tampa Mayor, Dick Greco, who has said he favors the controversial surveillance system. Late last week, several members of the council expressed alarm at the presence of the system after noting they "had no idea" they had voted for it. The outcry prompted today's hearing and subsequent vote. The face-scanning software has drawn national ire from people concerned about potential abuse of the system and see it as an invasion of privacy.

The software matches digital images of people against a massive database of criminals. There are dozens of the pole-mounted, remotely-controlled cameras strategically placed throughout the popular entertainment district.

Recently, Pinellas County announced they were also interested in the technology and have installed it in the Pinellas County Jail. But the Pinellas plan takes the technology a step further. As opposed to the Ybor database, which looks for wanted criminals, the Pinellas plan envisions linking their database to Florida’s driver license bureau.

Florida Representative C.W. Bill Young was instrumental in securing the $3.5-million dollars in federal grant money used to implement the face-scanning technology.

Because all photographs taken for driver’s licenses are digital images, the database is perfectly suited for the face-scanning system. A spokesman for Rep. Young tells BayNews9.com the congressman fully supports [???!!!] linking the face-scanning software to the driver's license bureau database.

Dec 14/04 -MC Morning News- A “mistake” made in the office of a seriously-compromised Supervisor of Election in Pinellas County whose husband is a top executive of the country’s largest election services company has almost unnoticed spiked the best hope for a election recount in Florida that might have thrown a spotlight on the dark corners of the Florida election process concealing widespread systemic and system-wide vote fraud

The office of Supervisor of Elections in Pinellas County, Deborah Clark, provided inflated totals on the YES side of the gambling initiative which were then used by state officials in the official state tally of the hotly-contested gambling initiative known as Amendment 4.

The initiative would allow casino slot machine gambling in South Florida, an outcome devoutly to be wished by owners of the spanking new $700 million Hard Rock Café Casino in Hollywood, Florida, a facility all dressed up but with currently nowhere to go.

Pinellas County voters defeated the gambling initiative by more than 17,000 votes. But the official state record says the exact opposite, the result of a “mistake” by the office of Pinellas Elections Supervisor which would have gone unnoticed, said local reports, had it not been caught by outside observers.

CELEBRITIES PLEAD FOR TERRI SCHIAVO’S LIFE

By Michael Ireland
Chief Correspondent, ASSIST News Service

ST. PETERSBURG BEACH, FLORIDA (ANS) --Mar 26/05 - Celebrities Chuck Norris and Jennifer O’Neill have joined Mel Gibson, Patricia Heaton, Randy Travis and Pat Boone in issuing strong statements against the taking of Terri Schiavo’s life, and fervently pleading to reinsert Terri’s feeding tube, according to The Terri Schindler-Schiavo Foundation .

A Foundation press release obtained by ASSIST News Service (ANS) says Chuck Norris, the action film and television star known for his long-running CBS television series, "Walker, Texas Ranger" and for being a six-time undefeated World Professional Middle Weight Karate Champion, together with his wife Gena Norris issued a statement saying, “We are deeply grieved at what is happening to Terri.”

The statement said, “We as the people are suppose to protect those that are weaker, not dispose of them because of it. We are wondering why Terri's husband feels he should have any right to make decisions on her behalf, due to the fact that he basically abandoned her for another woman and new life. Are not the wedding vows we make meant to be a promise and not to be broken, even in times of sickness?

It continues: "If Terri's husband has chosen to start a new life then so be it, but at that moment he no longer should have a say regarding her well being. She has a loving family that will take care of and look after her. His rights should be null and void. We believe that Terri has a right to life and no one other than God should have a right to decide when to end it.”

Actress Jennifer O'Neill, known for the role of "Dorothy" in the movie Summer of '42 and for being a model and spokesperson for Cover Girl, said, “The taking of Terry Schiavo’s life should be considered unconscionable to rational thinking people. This is a human being with every right to continue life as any person on this planet. I strongly urge the re-insertion of her feeding tube to allow her to live out her life with some respect and dignity, not to be starved to death in front of the entire world's eyes by 21st century America.”

CARDINAL DECRIES ALL FORMS OF VIOLATION OF THE RIGHT TO LIFE

VATICAN CITY, MAY 18, 2005 (VIS) - Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, yesterday morning received Bob and Mary Schindler, the parents of Terri Schiavo, the young American women whose feeding tube was removed by court order at the request of her husband at the end of March, causing her death.

A communique released yesterday afternoon by the council stated that the Schindlers, accompanied by promoters of the Association of Missionaries of the Gospel of Life, are in Rome to thank Cardinal Martino for his efforts to save their daughter's life and to present the Holy See with the statutes of this association, recently created to defend life from its conception to natural death.

Cardinal Martino, notes the communique, in encouraging the initiatives of this new association, "recalled the recent very firm position of Benedict XVI on the occasion of his enthronement on the chair of St. John Lateran when he underlined that 'freedom to kill is not a true freedom, but rather a tyranny that reduces man to slavery'." The cardinal added that this statement "not only regards abortion and euthanasia, but also the death penalty, war, terrorism, the destruction or manipulation of human embryos, and extermination through hunger or devastation of the natural environment."

The Schindlers attended Pope Benedict's general audience this morning.

RIGHT TO LIFE:SCHINDLERS/MARTINO VIS

T-4 Euthanasia Program:

The Work of the National Socialists in WWII Germany

GAINESVILLE, Fla. --- Black magic is growing paler as the mysterious practices once used to “poison” evil slave masters attract a larger following among white Americans, who frequent conjure shops and seek voodoo rites on vacations, a new University of Florida study finds.

“There is a new respect for black folk beliefs,” said Jeffrey Anderson, a UF history graduate who did the research for his doctoral dissertation. “Some practitioners even argue that the United States is in the midst of an African-American magical renaissance.”

Today’s interest is more of the upscale sort. Instead of gathering roots from swamps, making powders from toads or fashioning “luck balls” from pig blood and hen feathers as was once done, today’s conjurers or professional magic makers are more likely to rely on manufactured spiritual supplies from large mail-order companies, Anderson said.

The upsurge in the popularity of African folk beliefs is driven by increasing numbers of New Age religious proponents who turn to these belief systems for spiritual growth much as they did Asian mysticism in the 1960s, Anderson said.

In addition, an influx of Latin Americans of African descent have arrived in the United States in the past decade with similar faith in supernaturalism, such as voodoo-practicing Haitians and Santeria-worshipping Cubans, he said. Like voodoo, Santeria involves the worship of multiple gods or spirits, Anderson said, whereas hoodoo, a form of magic, uses gods or spirits, but not necessarily for worship.

“All forms of African-American spiritual beliefs are now being practiced by a large number of white people,” he said. “That wasn’t common in antebellum days.”

In August 2002 in Tampa, Florida, four men and one teenager were arrested for animal cruelty while conducting a Santeria sacrifice. Their bodies were covered in the blood of a dead goat--and the yard around them was strewn with dismembered heads of chickens, pigeons, and doves. Occult Florida (& More )Story Here

Newspress- 01 - The North Fort Myers woman who police say went on a bloody rampage Sept. 2 — leaving her 6-year-old son dead — practiced witchcraft and went by the name “Palm Frond.”

Leslie Wallace, 39, studied the Wicca religion and — though the belief [supposedly] teaches nonviolence — kept recipes for death spells and ailments for enemies, according to reports made public Tuesday.

The reports also said Wallace, an ex-Marine who once was institutionalized after trying to kill herself, was kept under a suicide watch while recovering at Lee Memorial Hospital from five gunshot wounds.

A guard there wrote that she had this reaction to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks: “This is not the way she wanted to be ‘upstaged’ in the news.”

The reports said Wallace pulled a gun on her oldest son, Gregory, 19, in March or April of this year. But husband William Wallace stepped in, calmed his wife down and the family “called a truce.”

The fundamental commandment of Wicca, according to the Church and School of Wicca Web site, is “If it harm none, do what you will.”

According to police, Wallace deviated from that commandment in September, when she killed her son James and tried to shoot her other two sons, including one whose life was saved by a Bible.

Florida/Santeria—A cultural thing; Occult practice challenges evangelical churches in Miami
3/30/03

By Kenneth D. MacHarg

The recent conviction of Henry Cuesta on charges of a contract killing of Dulce Diaz, both Santeria practitioners, highlighted the growing presence of the African-Cuban Santeria cult appearing among south Florida’s diverse ethnic population.

In addition to Santeria and voodoo groups brought by immigrants from the Caribbean, church workers say that they are seeing an increase in Islam and secular religions which are taking their place along side the traditional Jewish and Christian groups in one of America’s most cosmopolitan cities.

Drawing the most curious interest in Miami, however, is Santeria, a blend of Catholicism and African religion that has its origins among the Yoruba people of western Nigeria. Santeria was born out of slavery, evolving when slaves who brought it to Cuba, Brazil and other Caribbean countries were discouraged or forbidden from practicing their religion. Santeria literally means, “saint worship.”

“Santeria is a third-world religion,” explained Dr. Mercedes Cros Sandoval who teaches anthropology at the Interamerican campus of Miami-Dade Community College and is writing a book on the subject. With its magical and spiritual dimensions, Santeria attracts those who are facing health, job, family or other problems or those who are in “risky” professions such as politicians or artists, she said. “It is a mental health and crisis intervention system and attracts those who are in a crisis over values,” Dr. Sandoval said.

The religious practice was easily able to take root in the Roman Catholic cultures of Latin America, especially Cuba and Brazil, where the Catholic church venerated a multitude of saints with whom the African deities could be equated, she explained.

Oct 19/03 - Newsmax - Terri Schiavo will be cremated immediately after her death on orders from her husband, Michael, her brother and sister revealed late Saturday, precluding any possibility that an autopsy could determine whether her brain damage was caused by a heart attack or physical abuse.

Terri's siblings, Suzanne Carr and Robert Schindler Jr., told Fox News Channel's "The Big Story with Rita Cosby" that they'd like the authorities to examine the circumstances of the events that caused their sister's brain damage, based on medical reports that show she sustained several broken bones and a neck injury consistent with strangulation.

Terri's brother said, however, that her husband, Michael, has "instructed the judge to cremate her body upon her death, which adds even more suspicion to what really happened to Terri."

Top 101 global leaders; South Florida's cadre of influential leaders runs the spectrum from bankers, lawyers and shippers to CEOs, educators and government officials
South Florida CEO, April, 2004

South Florida is at a critical juncture for global trade, on the cusp of great new developments, while facing daunting challenges.

The good news is that Latin America--South Florida's top trade region--is growing again, increasing demand for goods shipped through our ports. Total international merchandise trade for the tri-county area rose 4.4 percent last year, crossing $54 billion--about where we were three years ago. "The picture is much more positive," notes Manny Mencia, head of international for Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development agency. "We have seen the worst." At the same time, we have the potential to secure supra-regional status as headquarters of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (see story pg. 34).

South Florida also continues to flex international muscle in other industries. In telecommunications, the Network Access Point (NAP) of the Americas in Miami now has more than 150 customers, double last year's count. A few miles away at Telefonica USA's data center, CEO Pete Pizarro reports a 70 percent year-over-year jump in revenues, as that facility connects US firms to Telefonica's grid in Latin America.

In professional services, things also look promising. Attorney Burton Landy, chairman emeritus of Akerman Senterfitt's International Practice Group, says great strides are being made in positioning Miami as the definitive dispute resolution center for the Americas [when CAFTA & FTAA come into Force]. "What we had glimmers of hope for--to become a global center for arbitrations--is now beginning to happen," he says. "Many contracts now state that Miami should be the center for resolving disputes."

Another new vista lies in the field of insurance, reports Bowman Brown, senior partner at international law firm Shutts & Bowen. Legislation introduced by State Sen. Gwen Margolis could make South Florida an international insurance center, just as legislation in the late 1970s made us a center for international banking. "This could add a whole new dimension to [international services] here," says Brown, with another multi-billion dollar impact.

But not all is well. As Charlotte Gallogly, president of Miami's World Trade Center, points out in this issue (see pg. 12), the waters ahead are filled with obstructions. Most come from federal policies to increase homeland security and thwart money laundering. On the trade front, those translate into added security costs for our seaports, and near-impossible regulations for goods shipped into our region--due to go into effect this summer. "These could be devastating, and need to be delayed," warns Gallogly.

Jeb Bush - Governor, State of Florida - FTAA

Tremendously respected in Latin America and the Caribbean, the bilingual governor has closed many an international business deal with a personal visit or telephone call. He's pushed hard for the FTAA agreement--and for Miami's selection as the permanent secretariat. A true player in the international realm. (Tallahasee)

Full Story Here:
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0OQD/is_4_7/ai_n6032214#continue

MIAMI (Reuters) - Il corpo di Terri Schiavo, la donna della Florida in stato vegetativo da 15 anni che è stata al centro di una disputa sul diritto a morire, è stato cremato ieri. Lo ha reso noto l'avvocato del marito.

Schiavo, 41 anni, è morta giovedì in una casa di cura della Florida, 13 giorni dopo che le era stata tolta la sonda per l'alimentazione per ordine del tribunale. Il suo cervello era gravemente danneggiato a causa di un arresto cardiaco nel 1990.

I tribunali hanno appoggiato suo marito, Michael Schiavo, decidendo che la donna non avrebbe voluto vivere nello stato vegetativo in cui si trovava. Ma i suoi genitori, Bob e Mary Schindler, hanno lottato per mantenere in vita la figlia.

"I resti... sono stati cremati questa mattina intorno alle 9 alla National Cremation Society, secondo l'ordine della corte della contea di Pinellas", ha detto in una nota l'ufficio dell'avvocato di Michael Schiavo, George Felos.

Articoli

Human Experimentation: An Overview on Cold War Era Programs (Testimony, 09/28/94, GAO/T-NSIAD-94-266).

During World War II and the Cold War, the Defense Department (DOD) and
other national security agencies conducted extensive radiological,
chemical, and biological research programs. Precise information on the
number of tests, experiments, and participants is unavailable and the
exact numbers may never be known. However, GAO has identified hundreds
of experiments in which hundreds of thousands of people were used as
test subjects. These experiments often involved hazardous substances,
such as radiation, blister and nerve agents, biological agents, and LSD.
In some cases, basic safeguards to protect people were either not in
place or were not followed. Some tests and experiments were done in
secret, and others involved the use of people without their knowledge or
consent or their full knowledge of the risks involved. The effects of
the experiments are hard to determine. Although some participants
suffered immediate injuries, and some died, in other instances health
problems did not surface until 20 or 30 years later. It has proven
difficult for participants in government experiments between 1940 and
1974 to pursue claims because little centralized information is
available to prove participation or determine whether health problems
resulted from the testing. Government experiments with human subjects
continue today. For example, the Army uses volunteers to test new
vaccines for malaria, hepatitis, and other exotic diseases. Since 1974,
however, federal regulations have required (1) the formation of
institutional review boards and procedures and (2) researchers to obtain
informed consent from human subjects and ensure that their participation
is voluntary and based on knowledge of the potential risks and benefits.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

REPORTNUM: T-NSIAD-94-266
TITLE: Human Experimentation: An Overview on Cold War Era Programs
DATE: 09/28/94
SUBJECT:
Nuremberg Code of Ethics
Helsinki Declaration

Medical supply firm to sell patient RFID chips for Implantation

CNet - Nov 10/04 - Medical-supply company Henry Schein has agreed to distribute implantable radio frequency identification chips to doctors' offices across the country--the first major sales push for the technology since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved it for medical use last month.

The rice grain-size devices, called VeriChips, enable doctors and other medical staff to instantly retrieve patients' medical records by scanning chips injected into the fatty tissue in their arms--much like a clerk scanning a can of peas at the grocery store. The distribution deal, announced Wednesday, is a big one for VeriChip maker Applied Digital. Henry Schein, based in Melville, N.Y., sells medical supplies to nearly 115,000 private medical practices in the United States and booked $3.4 billion in sales last year.

Final Report of the Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments by United States Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments