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Theresa Marie Schiavo (born 3 December 1963), commonly known as Terri Schiavo (pronounced shI-vO), is an American woman from St. Petersburg, Florida, the daughter of Robert and Mary Schindler. On February 25, 1990 she suffered severe brain damage caused by a cardiac arrest, believed to be brought on by bulimia. The efforts of Schiavo's husband to cause her death depriving her of nutrition and hydration have prompted a fierce debate over bioethics, euthanasia, judicial activism, legal guardianship, federalism, and civil rights, as well an active countereffort to keep her on a feeding tube . Schiavo is now confined at the Hospice of the Florida Suncoast in Pinellas Park, in the Tampa Bay area.

Michael Schiavo, Mrs. Schiavo's husband and legal guardian, contends that he is carrying out his wife's wishes not to be kept alive given her present state. Mrs. Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, and her siblings, dispute Mr. Schiavo's position, holding that Terri is "responsive" and in no discomfort, and that she would not wish to die. The courts that have heard this case have all ruled in favor of Mr. Schiavo thus far, but her parents have vigorously appealed the courts' decisions and sought to prevent the cessation of life support. Vatican officials of the Roman Catholic Church, U.S. President George W. Bush, Florida Governor Jeb Bush, many Republicans, and several Democrats in the Florida Legislature and U.S. Congress have sided with Mrs. Schiavo's parents. Other groups and individuals, such as the American Civil Liberties Union, many Democratic and several Republican legislators, have expressed support for the position of Michael Schiavo.

On March 18, 2005 her feeding tube was removed under court order. (This is the third time it has been removed; it was replaced after legal challenges twice before.) Without intervention, this will result in her death by dehydration. Lack of water intake causes electrolyte imbalance that causes a heart attack (myocardial infarction) which results in cardiac arrest producing death. Neurologists say this is unlikely to cause pain, given Schiavo's physical state. Replacing the tube would have required about two hours to transport Mrs. Schiavo from the nursing home where she is under hospice care to a nearby hospital, then surgery followed by several days' hospitalization to restore her electrolyte balance . With the Circuit Court of the 11th District ordering her parents to cease legal appeals on her behalf (as the most recent round of appeals, begun on March 25 merely repeats the charges brought up in the previous round and does not add any new evidence or facts to the case), the likelihood of this happening is disappearingly small.

One of the effects of this case is that Americans are showing an increased interest in living wills. Legal experts say that the entire court battle could have been avoided if Schiavo had properly documented her wishes prior to her collapse.

Early life

Schiavo was born as Theresa Marie Schindler. She grew up in the Huntingdon Valley area of Lower Moreland Township, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia, as the oldest of three children. She graduated from a private Catholic high school, Archbishop Wood High School, in nearby Warminster Township in 1981. As a teenager, she was overweight but managed to reduce her weight significantly with the help of a physician. In 1982, she met Michael Schiavo in a sociology class at Bucks County Community College in Newtown, where they were both students; the two married on November 10, 1984. The couple moved to St. Petersburg, Florida in April 1986. Bob and Mary Schindler, Ms. Schiavo's parents, also moved to St. Petersburg three months later.

Initial medical crisis

On the morning of February 25, 1990, around 5:30 a.m. EST, Schiavo collapsed in her home in St. Petersburg. According to her discharge summary from Humana Hospital, Schiavo suffered cardiac arrest and anoxic brain damage, accompanied by hypokalemia (abnormally low levels of potassium in the blood), as well as seizures, respiratory failure, and an injured knee from the fall. The cause of her cardiac arrest is believed to be due to a bulimia nervosa-induced hypokalemic imbalance in her blood. At the time of her hospital admission, her blood potassium level was 2.0 mEq/L; the normal range for adults is 3.5–5.0.

In 1992, a medical malpractice suit was brought against Schiavo's medical care providers. The jury concluded that Schiavo had indeed suffered from bulimia, which had caused her hypokalemic blood imbalance and subsequent cardiac arrest, and had not been properly diagnosed by the Humana Hospital staff. Though the hospital appealed, the case was settled in 1993 before the appeal could be decided; Terri Schiavo received $750,000 and Michael Schiavo received $300,000 from the hospital. Florida's Second District Court was also later to find that Schiavo's cardiac arrest had been the result of a potassium imbalance.

A bone scan performed one year after her 1990 injury showed, according to the radiologist who evaluated it, that Ms. Schiavo had suffered prior traumatic injuries to multiple ribs (on both sides), to both sacroiliac joints, both knees, both ankles, several thoracic vertebrae, and to her right thigh, in addition to a minor compression fracture of the L1 vertebra. Mrs. Schiavo's family did not know of the existence of this scan until November 2002, 12 years after her brain damage and entry into an incapacitated state. Forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden, provided with the scan but not with her history, suggested that physical trauma, specifically a head injury, probably caused Mrs. Schiavo's collapse, , though in a later interview , after learning her history, he agreed that the bulimia/hypokalemia explanation was also possible. The trauma is consistent with her cardiac arrest, fall, CPR attempts and eventual resuscitation.

Upon becoming aware of the bone scan report possibly suggesting previous abuse, the Schindlers petitioned the Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court for a full evidentiary hearing to evaluate the new evidence. On November 22, 2002, probate judge George Greer denied the motion, stating that the issue of trauma 12 years earlier was irrelevant to the current case.

Mrs. Schiavo's family and Dr. William Hammesfahr, a neurologist they hired to examine her in 2002, claim that she had been battered by her husband. Hammesfahr was later to be disciplined by the Florida Board of Medicine in 2003 regarding an overbilling charge for a stroke treatment (PDF file) (the same treatment, in fact, that he proposed to use in order to treat Terri in 2002), and has been accused of falsely claiming to be a Nobel Prize nominee.

Schiavo's condition

Issues of dispute

Mrs. Schiavo's condition and prognosis are matters of dispute. The only facts which appear not to be in dispute are that she is not in a coma, she is severely brain damaged, and she is partially blind. Since her collapse, she has been fed through a gastric feeding tube. This is the life support mechanism around which the case revolves.

Since 1991 the Schiavos' personal physicians and six different court-appointed physicians have concluded that Schiavo is in a persistent vegetative state (PVS). Patients in a persistent vegetative state have severe brain damage and are in a state of "wakefulness without awareness." In many cases, including that of Schiavo's, the persistent vegetative state occurs after coma. Patients in a persistent vegetative state are usually considered to be unconscious and unaware. They may experience sleep-wake cycles or be in a state of chronic wakefulness. They may exhibit some behaviors that can be construed as arising from partial consciousness—reflex or random behaviors such as grinding of teeth, swallowing, smiling, shedding tears, grunting, moaning or screaming without any apparent external stimulus. They are unresponsive to external stimuli, except, possibly, painful stimuli.

Mrs. Schiavo's parents claim that their daughter does not meet the definition of a persistent vegetative state. Her parents claim that she smiles, laughs, cries, moves and makes childlike attempts at speech and that she attempts to say "Mom" or "Dad" or "yeah" when they ask her a question. They claim that when they kiss her she looks at them and sometimes "puckers up" her lips. They cite the testimony and affidavits of 33 physicians and therapists (including 15 neurologists) who, after reviewing video segments provided by her parents, believe that Mrs. Schiavo should receive further tests and/or would likely respond to therapy. Only two of these physicians, however, had access to her full medical history and examined her in person. Some of these physicians have claimed that there is a "strong likelihood that Mrs. Schiavo is in a 'minimally conscious state.'" There were six video segments provided by Schiavo's parents totaling four minutes and twenty seconds in length (edited down from four and a half hours of videotape). The video selected for these segments may be indicative of her general responsiveness or they may represent moments where Schiavo's behavior seemed to be coincidentally appropriate to what was going on around her; the rest of the recorded video has not been released publicly.

Mrs. Schiavo's parents have stated that several days after the removal of the feeding tube, Mrs. Schiavo made an attempt to say "I want to live" in response to their attempts to coach her. An emergency motion to restore the feeding tube claims that "she managed to articulate the first two vowel sounds, first articulating AHHHHH and then virtually screaming WAAAAAA." The incident occured only in the presence of family members and has not been independently confirmed; Schiavo has not been able to speak since her heart attack in 1990. Judge Greer said that Schiavo's utterances came only after being touched, which was consistent with evidence presented in 2002. "All of the credible medical evidence this court has received over the last five years is that this is not a cognitive response, but rather something akin to a person jerking his/her hand off a hot stove long before he/she has thought about it," Greer wrote.

On March 25, Robert Schindler informed the media that his daughter could die within a matter of hours; however, in a news conference the following day, Michael Schiavo's attorney, George Felos, said that Terri Schiavo's death was not imminent. In most cases, patients die ten to fourteen days following the removal of a feeding tube. Therefore, Schiavo's death will likely occur between March 27 and April 1.

Medical opinions

Schiavo's cerebral cortex has been completely destroyed (and has been replaced by cerebrospinal fluid), and there is also damage to the lower brain and brain stem, which controls functions such as breathing and swallowing, due to the lack of oxygen her brain suffered after her heart attack in 1990.

Dr. Ron Cranford, a neurologist at the University of Minnesota, assessed Schiavo's brain function in 2001 as part of a court-ordered assessment. He was quoted in Florida Today as saying " has no electrical activity in her cerebral cortex on an EEG (electroencephalogram), and a CT (computerized tomography) scan showed massive atrophy in that region."

Three Florida neurologists viewed 12 of Schiavo's computed tomography scans on March 22. After viewing the scans, Dr. Leon Prockop (a professor and former chairman of neurology at the University of South Florida's College of Medicine) was quoted by the Sun-Sentinel as saying that Schiavo's is the "most severe brain damage as I've ever seen." Dr. Walter Bradley, the chairman of neurology at the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine, said that he "doubts there's any activity going on in the higher levels of her brain."

In 2002, a trial was held to determine whether or not any new therapy treatments would help Schiavo restore any cognitive function. A new CAT scan was done, and showed severe cerebral atrophy. An EEG showed no measurable brain activity.

Five doctors were selected to provide their expert opinions to the trial: two by Schiavo's parents, two by Michael Schiavo, and one by the court. These five doctors examined Terri Schiavo's medical records, brain scans, the videos, and Mrs. Schiavo herself. The physicians were divided in their conclusions. The two doctors selected by Schiavo's parents (one of whom was a radiologist, not a neurologist; the other of whom made several claims about therapies supposedly developed by him which the court found spurious) supported their conclusion; the two doctors selected by Schiavo's husband and the doctor appointed by the court supported Mr. Schiavo's position. Greer ruled with the latter that Mrs. Schiavo was in a PVS and was beyond hope of significant improvement.

Florida's Second District Court of Appeal reviewed all the evidence and upheld the trial court's decision, saying had they heard the case themselves they would have ruled the same as Greer. Judge Greer reviewed a six-hour tape of Schiavo and concluded that her vegetative condition was factual and not subject to legal dispute.

Mrs. Schiavo could be evaluated with a PET scan in her current condition. However, an MRI cannot be done without first surgically removing experimental electrodes which were implanted within her brain in 1992, something that Mr. Schiavo has chosen not to do.

Effect of removing feeding tube

Most neurologists believe that Schiavo will not experience pain, hunger or thirst due to the removal of the feeding tube. Perry G. Fine, the vice president of medical affairs at the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, was quoted in the Los Angeles Times as saying that "What my patients have told me over the last 25 years is that when they stop eating and drinking, there's nothing unpleasant about it. In fact, it can be quite blissful and euphoric...the word 'starve' is so emotionally loaded. People equate that with the hunger pains they feel or the thirst they feel after a long, hot day of hiking. To jump from that to a person who has an end-stage illness is a gigantic leap."

On March 26, more than a week after the removal of the feeding tube, Michael Schiavo's attorney George Felos said that "she looked beautiful. In all the years I've seen Mrs. Schiavo, I've never seen such a look of peace and beauty upon her." Her father offered a different opinion: "She is fighting like hell to stay alive."

Controversy

Michael Schiavo

Under Florida law, Mr. Schiavo is Mrs. Schiavo's legal guardian. He says his wife would not have wanted to live as a vegetable and that he is fighting for her right to die. He has placed Mrs. Schiavo in a hospice and put limits on the time her family is allowed to visit her. To date, he has successfully fought the efforts of Mrs. Schiavo's parents to replace him as guardian and take control of her care.

Although his wife never wrote a living will expressing a wish to refuse nutrition or medical treatment if disabled, Mr. Schiavo says they had conversations which make him sure she would not want to continue living in such a state. Two of his relatives have supported this claim. Michael Schiavo halted most therapy for his wife in 1994 including speech and occupational therapy. In 1998, Mr. Schiavo initiated legal action to withdraw his wife's life support.

In an appearance on ABC News's Nightline on March 15, 2005, Michael Schiavo cited the willingness that Mrs. Schiavo's parents expressed to keep her alive by any means necessary, including quadruple amputation if needed, as a key reason for denying transfer of guardianship to them.

Hospice staff describe Mr. Schiavo as a very supportive husband who berated nurses for not taking better care of his wife; in 1994 the hospice attempted (unsuccessfully) to get a restraining order against him because he was demanding more attention for his wife at the expense of other patients' care. Due to the attention she has received in the 15 years she has been bedridden, Mrs. Schiavo has never developed any bedsores.

Raising the issue of a possible conflict of interest is the fact that Mr. Schiavo stands to inherit the remainder of Mrs. Schiavo's malpractice settlement upon her death. Mr. Schiavo has publicly responded to this charge by claiming that of the original $1,050,000 awarded in the malpractice suit, less than $50,000 is left, the rest having been spent under a judge's supervision on medical care for Mrs. Schiavo and the ongoing legal battle. This, however, is disputed. He has also stated that if he does receive this money, he will donate it to charity.

On March 11, 2005, media tycoon Robert Herring (who believes that embryonic stem cell research could cure Schiavo's condition in the future) offered $1 million to Michael Schiavo if he agreed to waive his guardianship to his wife's parents. The offer was rejected, Schiavo having reportedly found it "offensive." Schiavo's attorney, George Felos, stated that Schiavo has received other monetary offers, also rejected, including one of $10 million. These offers seem to have been made under the misconception that the removal of Mrs. Schiavo's feeding tube remains a matter of Mr. Schaivo's choice. It was ruled in February 2000 that Mrs. Schiavo would choose to have the tube removed, and Michael Schiavo does not have the ability to undo this legal determination.

The Schindler family

Mrs. Schiavo's family has been battling her husband over her fate since 1993. Even though the courts have consistently upheld the ruling that Mrs. Schiavo would choose to have her life support discontinued, her family members have used every legal measure available to them to prevent the disconnection of her feeding tube.

Her family claims that Mrs. Schiavo was a devout Roman Catholic who would not wish to violate the Church's teachings on euthanasia by intentionally starving or dehydrating herself to death, and that she never expressed such a desire to anyone in her own family or circle of friends. The Schindlers' legal fight has been and continues to be funded by a variety of sources on the political right ().

Mrs. Schiavo's father, Bob Schindler, has stated that Florida State Judge George Greer, who has pronounced several of the recent decisions in the case has never called her into the courtroom or visited her to observe her condition first-hand. Schindler feels that if his daughter dies in accordance with the court order to have her feeding tube removed, it will be an instance of "judicial homicide."

Legal involvement and "Terri's Law"

Michael Schiavo first sought permission to remove his wife's feeding tube in November 1998. Her feeding tube was removed first on April 26, 2001, but was reinserted two days later on an appeal by her parents.

On October 10, 2003, the final remaining appeal filed by the Schindlers was dismissed. Five days later, on October 10 Terri's feeding tube was removed for the second time. On October 21, the Florida Legislature, in emergency session, passed "Terri's Law" which gave Florida Governor Jeb Bush the authority to intervene in the case. Bush immediately ordered the feeding tube reinserted.

On May 19, 2004, Florida Judge W. Douglas Baird overturned the law saying that it "summarily deprived Florida citizens of their right to privacy." Bush appealed the ruling to the Florida Supreme Court and on September 23, 2004 they reached a unanimous decision , ruling that the legislature and executive branches of government unconstitutionally intervened in a judicial matter (see Separation of powers) and that "Terri's Law" is unconstitutionally retroactive legislation. The family immediately appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. On January 24, 2005, the Supreme Court refused to hear the case.

Nineteen different Florida state court judges have at various times considered the Schindlers' request on appeal in six state courts. Appellate courts do not reconsider evidence, but can only rule whether a trial is conducted properly; none of these courts have found legal grounds to overturn the initial ruling. . The final ruling came on February 25, 2005 when Judge George Greer ordered the feeding tube removed on March 18, 2005.

Public opinion

There has been a large outcry from Christian right groups demanding that Mrs. Schiavo's tube be restored so that she will continue to live. The fact that Mrs. Schiavo is likely to die near Easter is not lost on the protesters, who have been gathering outside Florida Governor Jeb Bush's residence and calling him "Pontius Pilate."

At least ten protesters, including three children, have been arrested outside the hospice where Schiavo is located. Judge Greer is under protection from U.S. marshals due to death threats for having ruled against restoring Mrs. Schiavo's feeding tube, and at least two murder attempts against Michael Schiavo have been foiled.

However, numerous polls show that a majority of Americans believe that Michael Schiavo should have the authority to make decisions on behalf of his wife and that the United States Congress overstepped its bounds with its intervention in the case.

According to an ABC News poll, 70 percent of Americans believe that Terri Schiavo's death should not be a federal matter, and are opposed to the legislation transferring the case to federal court. In the same poll, a 63 percent majority said that they support the removal of Schiavo's feeding tube. A 67 majority agreed with the statement that "elected officials trying to keep Schiavo alive are doing so more for political advantage than out of concern for her or for the principles involved." A poll by CBS News showed that 82 percent believe the Congress and President should stay out of the matter, while 74 percent thought it was "all about politics." Only 13 percent think Congress acted because of concern for Terri Schiavo. Furthermore, Congressional approval rating sank to 34 percent, the lowest number since 1997.

Recent developments

Florida Legislature

On March 17, members of the Florida Legislature were considering a bill that would make removing food and water from patients in a persistent vegetative state illegal without a living will. Although this bill was passed by the Florida House of Representatives by a vote of 78 to 37, the Florida Senate defeated a similar measure hours later, 21 to 18.

U.S. Congress

Schiavo's feeding tube was removed again on March 18, 2005 at 1:45 p.m. EST. Around the previous midnight, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Republican from Tennessee, and Michael Enzi of Wyoming, also a Republican, announced that Terri Schiavo would be called to testify before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on March 28, 2005 in Washington. Frist serves on the committee; Enzi is its chairman. Because of her condition, Schiavo cannot testify, but the letter that they sent gave her federal protection as a prospective witness (a law used in the 1950s and 1960s, designed for Mafia witnesses, makes it a federal crime to prevent a person from testifying before Congress).

Republican leaders in the House of Representatives, including Dennis Hastert of Illinois, Tom DeLay of Texas, and Tom Davis of Virginia, opened a congressional inquiry of the House Government Reform Committee, to take place in Clearwater on March 25, and issued subpoenas for Terri and Michael Schiavo and several hospice workers. Greer struck down the subpoenas as unconstitutional and let the order that gave Schiavo permission to remove the feeding tube stand. Greer ordered that the tube be removed immediately, per Mr. Schiavo's request.

On March 19, congressional leaders announced that they were drafting a bill which would transfer the case from state court to federal court. In the very early hours of March 21, Congress approved emergency legislation. Despite an absence of quorum, the Senate approved the bill (S. 686 CPS) by voice vote. The bill passed unanimously, with 97 Senators not present. Meanwhile, in the House of Representatives, deliberation continued during an unusual Sunday session. When it came to a vote, the motion was passed 203-58 (156 Republicans and 47 Democrats in favor, 5 Republicans and 53 Democrats against), with 174 Representatives (74 Republicans and 100 Democrats) not present on the floor at the time of the vote. The vote concluded at 12:41 a.m. EST; Bush returned from vacation at his Prairie Chapel Ranch in Crawford, Texas to Washington, D.C. and signed the bill into law at 1:11 a.m.; he came under fire from right-to-die supporters, who claimed a double-standard because he had personally signed into Texas law (as Governor) a right-to-die law, the Advance Directives Act. The law, colloquially known as the Palm Sunday Compromise, is extremely controversial.

The U.S. Congress may also consider another bill to prevent Schiavo's death, called the "Incapacitated Person's Legal Protection Act" (House Resolution 1151).

Politicians

Politically, views on the case have been roughly divided along traditional political lines, although there is significant variance on both sides. Editorials in publications such as National Review, The Weekly Standard, and The Wall Street Journal have supported keeping the feeding tube in place (with some of their commentators dissenting); The New York Times, among others, have supported the position of Michael Schiavo. On the other hand, some conservatives, such as former Representative Bob Barr, have expressed concern about the implications for federalism of a bill that involves the federal government in a matter traditionally left to the states. Many Democrats have simply stayed away from the controversy.

Republicans House Representative Tom DeLay of Texas and Senator Bill Frist of Tennessee, a cardiologist, have spoken in favor of keeping Schiavo alive, as has President George W. Bush. Critics say that Frist's stance on this issue appears to indicate a reversal in his personal opinion, as he has previously argued for the definition of brain death to be extended to include anencephalic conditions of the type seen in this case. Democratic Senators Tom Harkin and Kent Conrad have also supported federal intervention in the Schiavo case, although Republican Representative Dave Reichert was against it. Especially outspoken Democratic congressmen who have protested the federal intervention include Henry Waxman, Robert Wexler, Barney Frank, and Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

Ironically, the LA Times, March 26, 2005, reported on the case of congreessman DeLay, and his family's decision to allow his father to die in 1988 after he was badly injured in a tram accident. "Extraordinary measures to prolong life were not initiated," said the medical report of Charles DeLay, and cited "agreement with the family's wishes." The LA Times noted, "there was no such fiery rhetoric as the congressman quietly joined the sad family consensus to let his father die."

Talking points memorandum

According to a talking points memo circulated among Republican senators and reported on by ABC News and The Washington Post, the Schiavo case offered "a great political issue" that would appeal to the party's base (core supporters). Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist denounced the memo and asserted that the Republican Party's interest in the case was solely based on moral grounds. Various commentators from the Weekly Standard and Slate have raised questions about the authenticity of the memo. The source of the memorandum has not been disclosed by either ABC News or the Washington Post, but both news organizations are standing behind the story.

U.S. District Court

Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, filed a request for an emergency injunction with the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in Tampa on March 21. The claims were chiefly that the rulings of the state court judges were biased or unfair, and that removal of the feeding tube constituted a risk that Schiavo, as a Roman Catholic, would face extended time in purgatory. A two-hour hearing on the injunction was held on March 21 before Judge James D. Whittemore. Early on March 22 he refused to order the feeding tube reinserted on the basis that the suit was exceedingly unlikely to prevail.

U.S. Court of Appeals

The case was appealed. In the early morning of March 23, 2005 the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in in Atlanta denied the request to reinsert the feeding tube. The three-judge panel ruled 2-1. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals said the Schiavo's parents "failed to demonstrate a substantial case on the merits of any of their claims." Later that day, the Eleventh Circuit refused to hear the case as a whole (en banc) by a 10-2 vote.

Florida Legislature

On March 23, 2005 the Florida Senate again debated a law that would make removing nutrition and hydration from patients in a persistent vegetative state illegal without a living will. It was rejected, 21-18.

U.S. Supreme Court

Mrs. Schiavo's parents appealed again to the U.S. Supreme Court late on the night of March 23. They argued that Congress intended for the feeding tube to be reinserted when they passed the "Relief of the Parents of Theresa Marie Schiavo Act" (S 686 ES). The case first would have gone to Justice Anthony Kennedy, who could have either acted alone or with the eight other justices.

The Supreme Court rejected the appeal on the morning of March 24 in an unsigned one-sentence order.

Florida governor and executive

Following the Supreme Court's refusal to hear the case, Florida Governor Jeb Bush announced that he was going to investigate whether or not the Florida Department of Children and Families could take over Schiavo's care, on the grounds that the organization has the legal right to gain custody of incapacitated adults in emergency situations. On March 24, Judge Greer issued an injunction denying the Florida state government's right to take such an action.

Final stages

On March 26, 2005, one day before Easter, Bob and Mary Schindler announced that their legal options were exhausted. Paul O'Donnell, Franciscan monk and spiritual advisor to the Schindler family, announced to those holding a vigil outside the hospice in Pinellas Park, Florida, "The family would request that everyone go home, be with your children, hold them close and share every moment you have with them."

See also

Individuals who played significant roles in public debates and/or legal action regarding the issue of removal of life support:

• Sun Hudson
• Spiro Nikolouzos
• Karen Ann Quinlan
• Nancy Cruzan

Sources

• Terri Schiavo Case: Legal Issues Involving Healthcare Directives, Death, and Dying. Findlaw. A detailed compilation of legal documents related to the Schiavo case.
• The New York Times Database (1996-present): An index of 71 articles from The New York Times relating to the Schiavo case (requires free registration) .
• "Before fight over death, Terri Schiavo had a life." CNN. October 25, 2003.
• Breed, Allen G., and Matt Crenson. "Doctors: Schiavo tapes don't tell story." Associated Press. March 26, 2005.
• Carey, Benedict, and John Schwartz. "Schiavo's condition holds little chance of recovery." The New York Times. March 26, 2005.
• "Excerpts from diagnoses of 6 Schiavo doctors." Associated Press. March 24.
• Fackelmann, Kathleen. "Schiavo not likely to experience a painful death, neurologists say." USA Today. March 23, 2005.
• Graham, Judith. "Schiavo's expressions misleading, experts say." Chicago Tribune. March 25, 2005.
• Lamendola, Bob. "Neurologists see little sign of activity in Schiavo's brain." South Florida Sun-Sentinel. March 23, 2005.
• Rufty, Bill. "Doctors lament misuse of proper terminology in Schiavo debate." The Ledger. March 23, 2005.

External links

Primary sources

• Report of Dr. Pearse, guardian ad litem, December 1998 (temporary guardian ad litem for 6 months in 1998)
• Report of Dr. Wolfson, guardian ad litem appointed as a result of "Terri's Law," December 2003 (temporary guardian ad litem for 30 days in 2003)
• Terri's Law
• Florida Supreme Court Decision overturning Terri's Law as unconstitutional

Informational sites

• Terri Schiavo Information Page
  • Timeline and Legal Decisions
• Reference Page by Eric Zorn of the Chicago Tribune

Advocacy and commentary sites

• Online home of the Terri Schindler-Schiavo Foundation
• Blogs For Terri

• 1963 births
• Causes célèbres
• People from Florida
• Roman Catholics