On Mon, 28 Mar 2005 13:41:21 -0800 Marta Russell <ap888 at lafn.org> writes:
> Disability Rights National Spokespersons statement on Terri Shindler
> Schiavo
>
> http://www.raggededgemagazine.com/schiavostatement.html
>
> >Issues Surrounding Terri Schindler-Schiavo Are Disability Rights
> >Issues, Say National Disability Organizations
> >
> >Oct. 27, 2003 -- We,
> ><http://www.raggededgemagazine.com/#signatures>the undersigned,
> come
> >together in support of Terri Schindler-Schiavo, and her human and
> >civil rights. We are the national spokespersons for the rights of
> >millionDisability Rights National Spokespersons statement on Terri
> >Shindler Schiavos of Americans with disabilities whose voices are
> >often not heard over the din of political and religious rhetoric.
> We
> >come together for those who will be touched by disability in their
> >lifetime and who will need our help to make their voices heard.
> >
> >We call on the media to join with us in ensuring that the real
> story
> >about Terri Schindler-Schiavo, and thousands like her, is told.
> >
> >We ask the general public, who are clearly confused about what is
> >best for Ms. Schindler-Schiavo and others like her, to read this
> >joint statement, signed by national organizations and our allies,
> >and then to act accordingly to signal their support for Terri
> >Schindler-Schiavo. Terri Schindler-Schiavo is alive. She deserves
> >nothing less than the full advantage of human and civil rights the
> >rest of us are fortunate to enjoy as Americans. We will not rest
> >until her most basic humanity is secure.
On this point, I find myself in agreement with Justin Schwartz when he wrote a few days ago:
"You assume that Schiavo is a disbled person when the evidence is that she is not a person at all any more -- I don't knwo this evidence in detail, but she has been examined by scores of Drs over 15 years, not all of whom are junior Megeles intent on exterminating the unfit. From what I understand their opinion is virtually unanimous."
The available medical evidence strongly indicates that she has lost the minimal brain function required for consciousness and will, and without those capacities, one ceases to be a person in any meaningful sense.
As the Second District Court put it in its first opinion:
"Since 1990, Theresa has lived in nursing homes with constant care. She is fed and hydrated by tubes. The staff changes her
diapers regularly. She has had numerous health problems, but none have been life threatening."
"Over the span of this last decade, Theresa's brain has deteriorated because of the lack of oxygen it suffered at the time of the heart attack. By mid 1996, the CAT scans of her brain showed a severely abnormal structure. At this point, much of her cerebral cortex is simply gone and has been replaced by cerebral spinal fluid. Medicine cannot cure this condition. Unless an act of God, a true miracle, were to recreate her brain, Theresa will always remain in an unconscious, reflexive state, totally dependent upon others to feed her and care for her most private needs."
And in a later opinion, the Court wrote:
"Although the physicians are not in complete agreement concerning the extent of Mrs. Schiavo's brain damage, they all agree that the brain scans show extensive permanent damage to her brain. The only debate between the doctors is whether she has a small amount of isolated living tissue in her cerebral cortex or whether she has no living tissue in her cerebral cortex."
> >
> >The "right to life" movement has embraced her as a cause to prove
> >"sanctity of life." The "right to die" movement believes she is too
>
> >disabled to live and therefore better off dead. Yet the
> >life-and-death issues surrounding Terri Schindler-Schiavo are first
>
> >and foremost disability rights issues -- issues which affect
> >millions of Americans with disabilities, old and young.
> >
> >Can she think? Hear? Communicate? These questions apply to
> thousands
> >of people with disabilities who, like Ms. Schindler-Schiavo, cannot
>
> >currently articulate their views and so must rely on others as
> >substitute decision-makers. The law requires that a guardian's
> >decision be based on written documentation or other clear and
> >convincing evidence of her wishes. Her husband and guardian,
> Michael
> >Schiavo, says she would not have wanted to live in her current
> >condition, but there is no written documentation or compelling
> >evidence of this. There is just his word.
Which under Florida law is good enough for the courts. Indeed, as I understand it, the same is true in most states.
> >
> >Early on in Michael Schiavo's quest to remove his wife's source of
> >nourishment, an independent guardian was appointed upon request by
> >Schiavo's own attorney, George Felos. That guardian, attorney
> >Richard Pearse, issued a report to the judge stating that Michael
> >Schiavo was not a credible witness to his wife's end-of-life wishes
>
> >because he waited several years before coming forward with the
> claim
> >that she wanted to die. Pearse also noted that Michael Schiavo
> would
> >benefit financially from her death. Pearse was quickly removed at
> >the request of Felos. Experts on the issue of guardianship point
> out
> >that it is always desirable that a person in Terri
> >Schindler-Schiavo's position have an independent representative who
>
> >has no particular interest in the case other than her. Since the
> >dismissal of Pearse in 1999, Terri Schindler-Schiavo has never been
>
> >appointed another independent guardian. The law Gov. Jeb Bush has
> >just signed calls for one now.
> >
> >The peculiar series of events which have led up to the current
> >debate seem to have avoided both the judge's scrutiny and media
> >coverage. Michael Schiavo says his wife would not have wanted to
> >live in her current condition. And under Florida law a spouse has
> >the right to decide, though his powers are limited by the U. S.
> >Constitution.
> >
> >Michael Schiavo conveniently remembered Terri's alleged wishes only
>
> >after the malpractice judgment was awarded. A review of court
> >records shows that of the $700,000 from a malpractice settlement
> >Michael won that was to go for her care, over half has been spent
> on
> >his legal fight to disconnect her feeding tube. Over $200,000 of it
>
> >has been paid to his attorney George Felos.
Which suggests that he hasn't been motivated in this by the money, since it is clear that by the time this is all over, there is going to be precious little left of that settlement.
> Michael Schiavo has
> >refused to let his wife receive therapy from a speech pathologist,
> a
> >common type of rehabilitation available to people with brain
> injury.
> >A prominent expert filed an affidavit that Terri Schindler-Schiavo
> >can swallow her own saliva, and could potentially be weaned from
> the
> >feeding tube and recover some speech, so that she could indicate
> her
> >own wishes.
And this prominent "expert" is . . ?
> >
> >A recent report in the New York Times Sunday Magazine stated that
> >after months or years with little sign of consciousness, people may
>
> >still be capable of complex mental activity. The reporter, Carl
> >Zimmer, wrote, "To the medical world, ...hundreds of thousands of
> >...Americans who suffer from impaired consciousness present a
> >mystery." Whether Terri Schindler-Schiavo is -- or isn't -- capable
And that article was referring to people who have suffered severe brain damage but nothing as devastating as what has happened to Terri. Losing the bulk of your cerebral cortex is about as devastating a form of brain damage that one can suffer. That is not the sort of thing that it is physically possible to recover from, barring supernatural intervention.
>
> >of "high level thought" is not the real issue here. It is clear
> that
> >she is conscious and responsive beyond mere reflexes, as has been
> >demonstrated by her ability to track with her eyes, respond to
> >verbal commands by physicians who examined her on video, and react
> >to those she loves.
>From http://abstractappeal.com/schiavo/infopage.html#timeline
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
When the Second District first reviewed the trial court's decision that
Terri would choose not to live under her present circumstances,
the appellate court expressed no reservations when it explained
that Terri was and "will always remain in an unconscious, reflexive
state, totally dependent upon others…" In October, 2002, as a result
of Terri's parents' claims that treatment options offered promise to
restore some of Terri's cognitive functioning, the Second District
ordered the trial court to hold a trial on that issue. The trial court
did so, and in the course of that trial the parties litigated whether
Terri is in a persistent vegetative state.
The trial court heard testimony from five experts: two selected by Michael, two selected by the Schindlers, and one independent expert selected by the trial court. The two experts selected by Michael and the independent expert agreed that Terri was in a persistent vegetative state and that her actions were limited to mere reflexes. The two experts chosen by the Schindlers disagreed, but the trial court found their positions not credible. For instance, the trial court explained:
At first blush, the video of Terry Schiavo appearing to smile and look lovingly at her mother seemed to represent cognition. This was also true for how she followed the Mickey Mouse balloon held by her father. The court has carefully viewed the videotapes as requested by counsel and does find that these actions were neither consistent nor reproducible. For instance, Terry Schiavo appeared to have the same look on her face when Dr. Cranford rubbed her neck. Dr. Greer testified she had a smile during his (non-videoed) examination.
Also, Mr. Schindler tried several more times to have her eyes follow the Mickey Mouse balloon but without success. Also, she clearly does not consistently respond to her mother. The court finds that based on the credible evidence, cognitive function would manifest itself in a constant response to stimuli. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------
> >
> >She has a severe brain injury, yet has not undergone the
> >rehabilitation that is typically given to people with this type of
> >disability. People with severe cognitive disabilities are devalued
> >as lives not worth living. In truth, the lives of all of us with
> >severe disabilities are often considered expendable. This is why we
As I understand it she did undergo agressive therapy and aggressive attempts at rehabilitation. Those treatments just didn't take because of the extreme severity of her injury.
>
> >are speaking out.
> >
> >Americans who have disabilities -- cognitive disabilities like Ms.
> >Schindler-Schiavo -- have rights. Congress decided that in 1990
> when
> >it passed the Americans with Disabilities Act. Yet most of society
> >does not consider that Terri Schindler-Schiavo has any rights other
>
> >than the right to die. We believe she has a right to therapy and
> >support; we believe the Americans with Disabilities Act requires
> >that.
> >
> >Consider David Jayne, a 42 year old man with ALS. Every five
And with all due respect to Mr. Jayne, his case is not really comparable to Terri's. He after all has not suffered a brain injury so severe that he lost his cerebral cortex.
> >seconds, a ventilator on a cart next to his bed pumps air into his
> >lungs. He is not able to move. Twelve years ago, Jayne would have
> >dismissed this existence as a living hell. "Yes, I am very
> >passionate about the Terri Schindler-Schiavo issue, because I live
> >it," says Jayne, who was profiled in TIME Magazine in 2001. Jayne,
> >like many of us, would have once said he could not imagine living
> in
> >his current state. "If someone had told me I would be paralyzed and
>
> >tethered to a ventilator, yet still find meaning in life, I would
> >not have believed them." Today he says, "It is incredibly wrong for