Randall Bart
2003-09-23 02:05:46 UTC
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-smith091603.asp
(see also http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-smith090503.asp
and http://www.terrisfight.org/)
September 16, 2003, 12:40 p.m.
Terri Schiavos Life and Death
Time gained.
By Wesley J. Smith
September 11, 2003, was to be the beginning of the end for Terri Schindler
Schiavo. Last Thursday, a judge was scheduled to order the intentional
dehydration of the cognitively impaired Florida woman, at the request of
her husband. Mercifully, however, the law got in the way. (For more
background on the case, see here http://www.terrisfight.org/)
Judge George W. Greer of the Sixth Judicial Circuit, in Clearwater,
Florida, has repeatedly made it clear that he intends to order Terri's
death by dehydration; even though her husband has refused to provide his
wife any rehabilitation or therapy for more than ten years; even though
renowned doctors have sworn under penalty of perjury that her condition
can be improved with proper medical intervention; even though the husband
who wants her dead could benefit financially and personally from her
demise he plans to marry his fiancé with whom he has begun having
children, but he can't while his wife is still living; even though Terri's
blood family wants to care for her the rest of her life; even though a
guardian ad litem for Terri recommended against the dehydration; even
though Governor Jeb Bush wrote a letter requesting him to reconsider.
In a tragic irony, September 11 was supposed to be the death-ordering
date. But St. Petersburg, Florida attorney Pat Anderson, attorney for
Terri's family, may have struck legal gold in her and her clients' heroic
struggle to save Terri's life. She may have found a legal argument that
should, at least for now, prevent Terri's demise.
This is the gist of Anderson's approach:
Ending a patient's life by dehydration involves not one, but two, discreet
acts:
(a) Act # 1 is removing/clamping off the feeding tube. Michael Schiavo
requested, and has received, the right to this act. Alas, due to "right to
die" advocacy, killing a person through intentional dehydration because
they are cognitively disabled is legal.
(b) Act # 2 involves the deliberate withholding of food and water by
mouth. Michael did not ask for the right to do this act.
The provision of food and water by mouth is not a medical treatment but is
humane care, and thus cannot be withdrawn or withheld legally from a
patient who can assimilate nutrition and hydration.
A speech pathologist, who has successfully weaned four cognitively
disabled patients off of feeding tubes in the last month, testified that
Terri "has a good or excellent prognosis for being able to be taken off
her feeding tube."
Under Florida law, the right to rehabilitation is retained by the ward,
and not delegated to the guardian.
Under Florida law, neither the guardian Michael nor the court Judge
Greer has the right to harm the ward;
Absent some pre-incapacity expression by Terri to waive the basic right to
food and water and the right to rehabilitative therapy, the legal rights
to them must be honored and enforced. Testimony that she would not want to
be maintained by "tubes" would clearly not be enough since no tubes would
be involved in her care.
Terri has not been given the opportunity to receive rehabilitation or to
be weaned off the feeding tube so that she can take food and water by
mouth. Indeed, Michael has required that she just lay in bed for more than
ten years.
Hence, while a Florida Court of Appeals ordered the removal of Terri's
tube-feeding an order with which Judge Greer seems eager to comply, it
cannot be done in such a way as to "harm" Terri, e.g. without giving her a
chance to survive by taking food and water by mouth.
Terri should be allowed reasonable rehabilitation attempts before Judge
Greer orders her dehydrated to death. Refusing this clearly humane and
merciful request would be to intentionally cause Terri harm. Some might
even argue that refusing Terri any chance to live would be a non-voluntary
euthanasia homicide.
Judge Greer may just be listening. Rather than ordering the food tube
immediately clamped as had been widely anticipated, he has taken the
matter under advisement. Greer is expected to render his decision later
this week.
If Pat Anderson's motion is denied, I know she will appeal. And well she
should. Her approach is not a ploy to stall for time; it is a serious and
credible legal argument that deserves careful consideration. During any
appeal, Terri's dehydration should be put on hold until these crucial
legal issues that affect each and every cognitively disabled person on a
feeding tube in Florida are sorted out.
If Greer orders the dehydration to proceed without giving Terri a chance
to rehabilitate, he will have demonstrated that he views her as a less
than complete person. In such case, Floridians should begin to ponder
their legal and political options against Judge Greer (recalling him or
voting him out of office).
Now, about Governor Jeb Bush: When I recently wrote about Terri's case, I
reported that Bush had received more than 27,000 e-mails and other
communications demanding that he intervene to save Terri's life. I also
reported that he had responded by writing a letter to Judge Greer
requesting that he appoint a guardian ad litem.
Gov. Bush meanwhile has received up to 34,000 citizen communications. The
governor, however, has so far refused to do more than write a letter. He
continues to refuse his administration's formal intervention or make her a
ward of the state or even explain why Florida law prevents him from at
least trying.
Fortunately, Judge Greer's hesitation and Pat Anderson's advocacy give
people concerned about Schiavo's case more time to continue pressuring
Governor Bush to stand in the breach. Here's the 411:
Governor Jeb Bush
Florida Capitol Building, PL-05
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050
850-488-7146
850-487-2564 Fax
E-Mail: ***@eog.state.fl.us
Wesley J. Smith is a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute and an
attorney and consultant for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and
Assisted Suicide. His revised and updated Forced Exit: The Slippery Slope
From Assisted Suicide to Legalized Murder was recently published by Spence
Publishing.
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-smith091603.asp
(see also http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-smith090503.asp
and http://www.terrisfight.org/)
(see also http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-smith090503.asp
and http://www.terrisfight.org/)
September 16, 2003, 12:40 p.m.
Terri Schiavos Life and Death
Time gained.
By Wesley J. Smith
September 11, 2003, was to be the beginning of the end for Terri Schindler
Schiavo. Last Thursday, a judge was scheduled to order the intentional
dehydration of the cognitively impaired Florida woman, at the request of
her husband. Mercifully, however, the law got in the way. (For more
background on the case, see here http://www.terrisfight.org/)
Judge George W. Greer of the Sixth Judicial Circuit, in Clearwater,
Florida, has repeatedly made it clear that he intends to order Terri's
death by dehydration; even though her husband has refused to provide his
wife any rehabilitation or therapy for more than ten years; even though
renowned doctors have sworn under penalty of perjury that her condition
can be improved with proper medical intervention; even though the husband
who wants her dead could benefit financially and personally from her
demise he plans to marry his fiancé with whom he has begun having
children, but he can't while his wife is still living; even though Terri's
blood family wants to care for her the rest of her life; even though a
guardian ad litem for Terri recommended against the dehydration; even
though Governor Jeb Bush wrote a letter requesting him to reconsider.
In a tragic irony, September 11 was supposed to be the death-ordering
date. But St. Petersburg, Florida attorney Pat Anderson, attorney for
Terri's family, may have struck legal gold in her and her clients' heroic
struggle to save Terri's life. She may have found a legal argument that
should, at least for now, prevent Terri's demise.
This is the gist of Anderson's approach:
Ending a patient's life by dehydration involves not one, but two, discreet
acts:
(a) Act # 1 is removing/clamping off the feeding tube. Michael Schiavo
requested, and has received, the right to this act. Alas, due to "right to
die" advocacy, killing a person through intentional dehydration because
they are cognitively disabled is legal.
(b) Act # 2 involves the deliberate withholding of food and water by
mouth. Michael did not ask for the right to do this act.
The provision of food and water by mouth is not a medical treatment but is
humane care, and thus cannot be withdrawn or withheld legally from a
patient who can assimilate nutrition and hydration.
A speech pathologist, who has successfully weaned four cognitively
disabled patients off of feeding tubes in the last month, testified that
Terri "has a good or excellent prognosis for being able to be taken off
her feeding tube."
Under Florida law, the right to rehabilitation is retained by the ward,
and not delegated to the guardian.
Under Florida law, neither the guardian Michael nor the court Judge
Greer has the right to harm the ward;
Absent some pre-incapacity expression by Terri to waive the basic right to
food and water and the right to rehabilitative therapy, the legal rights
to them must be honored and enforced. Testimony that she would not want to
be maintained by "tubes" would clearly not be enough since no tubes would
be involved in her care.
Terri has not been given the opportunity to receive rehabilitation or to
be weaned off the feeding tube so that she can take food and water by
mouth. Indeed, Michael has required that she just lay in bed for more than
ten years.
Hence, while a Florida Court of Appeals ordered the removal of Terri's
tube-feeding an order with which Judge Greer seems eager to comply, it
cannot be done in such a way as to "harm" Terri, e.g. without giving her a
chance to survive by taking food and water by mouth.
Terri should be allowed reasonable rehabilitation attempts before Judge
Greer orders her dehydrated to death. Refusing this clearly humane and
merciful request would be to intentionally cause Terri harm. Some might
even argue that refusing Terri any chance to live would be a non-voluntary
euthanasia homicide.
Judge Greer may just be listening. Rather than ordering the food tube
immediately clamped as had been widely anticipated, he has taken the
matter under advisement. Greer is expected to render his decision later
this week.
If Pat Anderson's motion is denied, I know she will appeal. And well she
should. Her approach is not a ploy to stall for time; it is a serious and
credible legal argument that deserves careful consideration. During any
appeal, Terri's dehydration should be put on hold until these crucial
legal issues that affect each and every cognitively disabled person on a
feeding tube in Florida are sorted out.
If Greer orders the dehydration to proceed without giving Terri a chance
to rehabilitate, he will have demonstrated that he views her as a less
than complete person. In such case, Floridians should begin to ponder
their legal and political options against Judge Greer (recalling him or
voting him out of office).
Now, about Governor Jeb Bush: When I recently wrote about Terri's case, I
reported that Bush had received more than 27,000 e-mails and other
communications demanding that he intervene to save Terri's life. I also
reported that he had responded by writing a letter to Judge Greer
requesting that he appoint a guardian ad litem.
Gov. Bush meanwhile has received up to 34,000 citizen communications. The
governor, however, has so far refused to do more than write a letter. He
continues to refuse his administration's formal intervention or make her a
ward of the state or even explain why Florida law prevents him from at
least trying.
Fortunately, Judge Greer's hesitation and Pat Anderson's advocacy give
people concerned about Schiavo's case more time to continue pressuring
Governor Bush to stand in the breach. Here's the 411:
Governor Jeb Bush
Florida Capitol Building, PL-05
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050
850-488-7146
850-487-2564 Fax
E-Mail: ***@eog.state.fl.us
Wesley J. Smith is a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute and an
attorney and consultant for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and
Assisted Suicide. His revised and updated Forced Exit: The Slippery Slope
From Assisted Suicide to Legalized Murder was recently published by Spence
Publishing.
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-smith091603.asp
(see also http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-smith090503.asp
and http://www.terrisfight.org/)
--
RB |\ © Randall Bart
aa |/ ***@RandallBart.spam.com ***@att.spam.net
nr |\ Please reply without spam I LOVE YOU 1-917-715-0831
dt ||\ http://RandallBart.com/ Ånåheim Ångels 2002 World Chåmps!
a |/ Multiple sclerosis: http://www.cbc.ca/webone/alison/
l |\ DOT-HS-808-065 The Church Of The Unauthorized Truth:
l |/ MS^7=6/28/107 http://yg.cotut.com mailto:***@cotut.com
RB |\ © Randall Bart
aa |/ ***@RandallBart.spam.com ***@att.spam.net
nr |\ Please reply without spam I LOVE YOU 1-917-715-0831
dt ||\ http://RandallBart.com/ Ånåheim Ångels 2002 World Chåmps!
a |/ Multiple sclerosis: http://www.cbc.ca/webone/alison/
l |\ DOT-HS-808-065 The Church Of The Unauthorized Truth:
l |/ MS^7=6/28/107 http://yg.cotut.com mailto:***@cotut.com