Governor Jeb Bush Seeks Full, Fair Hearing to Defend Terri's Law

LifeNews.com ^ | November 19, 2003 | Steven Ertelt

[nickcarraway]

Pinellas Park, FL (LifeNews.com) -- Governor Jeb Bush on Wednesday used a number of different tactics in his defense of Terri's Law from a legal challenge by Terri Schiavo's estranged husband Michael and his pro-assisted suicide attorneys.

Bush's attorneys filed four legal documents on Wednesday afternoon in response to a lawsuit by Michael seeking to overturn Terri's Law and remove her feeding tube for a third time to end her life.

First, Bush attorneys said there should be a jury trial to decide whether or not Terri Schiavo wanted to be kept alive in her current condition. His attorneys also want Circuit Court Judge Douglas Baird to be removed from hearing the case.

Bush says Terri's rights under the Florida state constitution are best served with Terri's Law in place, than without it.

Michael's attorneys argue that Terri's right to privacy is being violated and that Bush's executive order allowing doctors to reinsert the feeding tube was a violation of the separation of powers because several courts have previously denied keeping the tube in place.

George Felos, the assisted suicide advocate who, with help from the ACLU, is representing Michael, said Bush is only seeking more delays and wants to relitigate the decade-long case.

However, Ken Connor, the pro-life attorney who is representing Governor Bush, said courts should first decide whether Terri's health care wishes were violated by Michael's denying her appropriate rehabilitative care and medical treatment. Only then can the constitutionality of Terri's Law be determined.

Connor said that this case is different from another that set Florida case law in favor of allowing a "right" to die.

A previous Florida case involved a woman who had two living wills and there was no familial dispute as to her wishes. Terri had no advance directives discussing medical care and her parents and siblings are at odds with her estranged husband regarding her care.

Though she has a feeding tube that provides her with food and water, Terri is not hooked up to a breathing machine and is not in a persistent vegetative state. Terri's parents cite several doctors who say Terri could recover with proper rehabilitative care.

Connor, the former president of the Family Research Council and Florida Right to Life, said that decisions in the Terri's Law suit should not be made with evidence or testimony from previous cases regarding Terri. He said that to not have a full and complete hearing would deny the due process rights of Governor Bush and the state legislature to defend the pro-life law.

Michael Schiavo claims Terri made an offhanded comment saying she preferred not to be kept alive artificially. However, Michael didn't recall the supposed statement until years after Terri's collapse.

However, Terri's best friend Diane Meyer recalls one of the few times Terri got mad at her was when they had just seen a television movie about Karen Ann Quinlan. Quinlan had been in a coma since collapsing six years earlier and was the subject of a bitter court battle over her parents' decision to take her off a respirator.

Meyer told a cruel joke about Quinlan, and it upset Terri.

"She went down my throat about this joke, that it was inappropriate," Meyer told the Associated Press previously.

She remembers Terri wondering how the doctors and lawyers could possibly know what Quinlan was really feeling or what she would want.

"Where there's life," Meyer recalls her saying, "there's hope."

Related web sites:

Terri's Family - http://www.terrisfight.org

[nickcarraway]

ping

[T'wit]

For normal, caring, decent people, yes, we say, "Where there's life, there's hope."

For George Felos, it's "Where's there's life, I'll sue to have it removed."

For Michael, it's "Where's there's life, there shouldn't be and that's malpractice on your part, George, and you took all the money but you didn't get the job done."

[Future Useless Eater]

Sludge Greer needs to be removed from any 'Terri' case as
well for similar reasons.

It can be shown VERY EASILY that GREER has played favorites
and given Michael and Felos' motions the FAST TRACK

...BUT given the Schindlers motions or filings the SLOW TRACK

THAT IS UNEQUAL PROTECTION UNDER THE LAW

Just look at Greer's handling of the GUARDIANSHIP issue
.vs. the feeding tube removal:

Sludge Greer scheduled the Guardianship hearing for
November 5th.

Sludge Greer scheduled Terri's DEATH to begin 21 days
PRIOR to that.

[Future Useless Eater]

>>Michael's denying her appropriate rehabilitative care and medical treatment.

But Michael can testify UNDER OATH he gave the BEST of care to Terri!

Just ask him on the stand about the times that
(Michael the nurse) had INJECTED TERRI with large amounts
of INSULIN, and the insulin bottles were found in
the trash in Terri's room after he left.

[fly_so_free]

This is good news. Way to go Jeb and Ken. God Bless you.

Maybe, after 13 years, people will finally see the truth, and right the wrongs that have been done to Terri. Here's hoping and Praying that she will finally be able to go home to her loving family- I ask in the Name of Jesus -Amen.

[PrepareToLeave]

Took me a while to get the nerve to log on this a.m. Went to sleep with Terri on my mind and woke up the same way. Thank God Jeb Bush is putting his $$$ where his mouth is. I won't forget it anytime soon.

[ovrtaxt]

Good for Jeb! Looks as if he's going full bore on this issue. They were trying to squeeze him for legal documents on a ridiculous time line, and he slammed them with several, including a motion to remove the proceedings to a different judge. Way to go, Jeb!

[Republic]

HURRAH! God Bless all who stand between Terri, her family and all of us who know and understand the great injustice that has been going on, via the courts, in Pinellas County. May our Father intervene in a mighty way, exposing and correcting the evil that has transpired there.

[Mr. Silverback]

ProLife Ping!

If anyone wants on or off my ProLife Ping List, please notify me here or by freepmail.

[Saundra Duffy]

Email received from Paul Finch, Advocacy Center in Fla:

Re: Terri Schiavo

Thank you for your thoughtfulness and interest regarding Ms. Schiavo and the complex ethical issues that she represents. It benefits us all for people such as you to enter into the dialogue about disability issues.


Since the initial withdrawal of hydration and nourishment from Terri Schiavo on Wednesday October 15, 2003 The Advocacy Center has received numerous complaints of possible neglect concerning Ms. Schiavo. Additionally we have received reports that there may have been a change in circumstance regarding Ms. Schiavo's condition since the last full review in State Court.



It is The Advocacy Center's federal mandate (pursuant to 29 U.S.C. §794(a) (doc 1) and 42 U.S.C.§1504 3(a)(2)(B) as the designated Protection and Advocacy Agency for the State of Florida to investigate complaints of abuse and/or neglect against persons with disabilities.



The Center is presently making demands in order to acquire reports and records necessary to undertake a thorough and impartial investigation of complaints we have received.



In order to preserve the integrity of our investigation during its pendency no further statement will be made to the public/ Press.

[nickcarraway]

Thanks!