Terri Schiavo case:
A Timeline of Events
Feb. 25, 1990: Schiavo collapses in her home from a possible potassium imbalance caused by an eating disorder, temporarily stopping her heart and cutting off oxygen to her brain.
November 1992: Schiavo's husband, Michael, wins more than $1 million in a malpractice suit.
July 29, 1993: Bob and Mary Schindler try to have Michael removed as Schiavo’s legal guardian. They accuse him of not properly caring for her. The case is later dismissed.
Feb. 11, 2000: Circuit Judge George W. Greer approves Michael Schiavo's request to have Terri's feeding tube removed, agreeing that she had told her husband she wouldn't want to be kept alive artificially.
April 2001: State and U.S. Supreme courts refuse to intervene. Schiavo's tube is removed but another judge orders it reinserted two days later.
Feb. 13, 2002: Mediation attempts fail. Michael Schiavo seeks permission to remove the feeding tube.
Nov. 22, 2002: After hearing medical testimony, Greer finds no evidence that Schiavo has any hope of recovery and orders the feeding tube removed.
Oct. 15, 2003: Tube removed for the second time.
Oct. 21, 2003: Republican Governor Jeb Bush signs a bill allowing him to intervene. Bush orders that the feeding tube be reinserted.
Dec. 2, 2003: An independent party finds "no reasonable medical hope" that Schiavo will improve.
Sept. 23, 2004: Florida Supreme Court strikes down the law that allowed Governor Bush to intervene and have the tube reinserted as unconstitutional.
Feb. 25, 2005: Greer gives permission for tube removal at 1 p.m. March 18.
March 16-17: Florida House passes bill intended to keep Schiavo alive but the Senate defeats a different version. In Washington, lawmakers can't reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate.
March 18: Feeding tube removed. Greer rules against congressional Republicans who had tried to put off tube removal by seeking her appearance at hearings.
March 19: Congressional leaders from both parties agree on a bill that would allow a federal court to review the case and prolong Schiavo's life.
March 20-21: Congress passes the bill after members scramble to return to Washington for an early morning vote. President Bush signs the bill outside his White House bedroom. Parents file an emergency request with a federal judge to have the tube reconnected.
March 22: U.S. District Judge James Whittemore refuses to order the reinsertion of the tube. Parents appeal to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
March 23: The 11th Circuit declines to order the reinsertion of the tube. The Schindlers turn to the U.S. Supreme Court.
March 24: The U.S. Supreme Court denies the appeal.
March 25: The Schindlers again ask Greer to intervene, saying Schiavo tried to say "I want to live."
March 26: Greer rejects another effort by the Schindlers to get the feeding tube reinserted; Florida Supreme Court declines to intervene.
March 29: The 11th Circuit agrees to consider the Schindlers' emergency bid for a new hearing on whether to reconnect her feeding tube.
March 30: The 11th Circuit declines to intervene. Hours later, the Schindlers' appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which also refuses to intervene.
March 31: Terri Schiavo dies at 41.
--courtesy of Associated Press |
Terri Schiavo dies; controversy about her death continues
By ELIZABETH LEFFALL and
MAURICE O. NDOLE
Although Terri Schiavo died Thursday, her death couldn’t put an end to the Schiavo-Schindler family feud.
At the request of her husband Michael, an autopsy was performed on Schiavo Friday but neither her parents nor an independent expert were allowed to attend.
Despite the objections from the Schindlers, Schiavo’s parents, the court granted Michael Schiavo’s wish to have his wife cremated. She was cremated Saturday.
And although a court order established Schiavo’s husband as the legal guardian last Tuesday, the Schindlers continue to fight for Schiavo to be buried in Pinellas County, Florida. Michael Schiavo plans to bury her ashes in Pennsylvania, where she grew up.
Husband versus parents—the nation has joined into the family debate over whether the court made the right decision to order Schiavo’s feeding tube removed and who has the right to speak for her.
Criminology sophomore Justin Strong said he hasn’t really followed the case but doesn’t understand why there’s such controversy between family members.
“If it was so illegal and so wrong to remove that tube, then why did they do it?” Strong said.
According to a public opinion poll taken by Time magazine before Schiavo’s death, 59 percent of Americans, including Christians, supported the decision to remove the feeding tube. Thirty-five percent did not.
Seventy-five percent disagreed with Congress intervening, and 65 percent said President Bush’s involvement was more politically motivated than value-based.
The poll also revealed that 54 percent did not agree Schiavo’s parents had the right to ask the court to overrule her husband’s wishes, while 39 percent said the parents should have been involved.
Some students said they are convinced Schiavo’s husband is guilty of something, they just don’t know what.
“I don’t know if Michael is a criminal,” said sophomore Tawny Kemp. “But I do feel there are ‘gray areas’ around him that I just don’t understand.”
Denise Burke, a nursing student, said Schiavo’s husband didn’t care about his wife because he married again and had children.
“I think the parents should be able to sue him. I don’t think that it was fair that he started a new life and Terri couldn’t,” Burke said.
Gayla Shorey, a senior health educator at Kaiser Permanente, said the dispute over Terri Schiavo’s final wishes could have been easily avoided.
“Whether she had wanted to be kept on life support or not would have never been a question. It could have all been taken care of with an advanced directive,” Shorey said.
Shorey said an advanced directive is simply a way of planning for a future circumstance when a person is no longer able to communicate with his or her care provider because of illness.
“There would be no hearsay after the directive is signed,” Shorey said. “Once signed it becomes a legal document recognized by the state.”
Shorey said advanced directives are forms that communicate a patient’s values, give specific instructions as to treatment, allow for a healthcare agent to be appointed and state a person’s last wishes.
“Most people think they need to have a living will and a durable power of attorney for medical. You really don’t, the directive includes all of that,” Shorey said.
Although many college students feel they have all the time in the world, Shorey said now is the best time for students to fill out their forms.
“As soon as a person is admitted into the hospital, medical staffs are required by law to offer the directive to their patients,” she said. “Don’t wait until you are admitted. These forms are offered in your local medical office and online. Terri Schiavo and the fight between her family is a perfect example of what happens when you’re not prepared.”
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