Where is the Terri Schiavo Autopsy Report?
It has been more than two months. Inquiring minds want to know.
posted by Wesley J. Smith @ 2:19 PM
23 Comments
Secondhand Smoke: Your 24/7 Bioethics Seminar
This WEB log considers issues involving assisted suicide/euthanasia, bioethics, human cloning, biotechnology, and the dangers of animal rights/liberation. My views expressed here, as in my books and other writings, reflect my understanding that the philosophy of human exceptionalism is the bedrock of universal human rights. Or, to put it another way: human life matters. (The opinions expressed here are my own and not necessarily those of any organization with which I am affiliated.)
Friday, June 03, 2005
Previous Posts
- California Assisted Suicide Bill Faltering But Not...
- Shazaam! An Even-Handed Article on the Cloning De...
- The Leslie Burke Case Is Beginning to Get the Atte...
- Step by Step, Inch by Inch, the Animal Rights Brow...
- Some Important Commentary Dealing With the Real An...
- A Columnist "Gets It" About The Radical New Jersey...
- Andrew Sullivan Supports Bush Veto Of ESCR Federal...
- Re Euthanasia: Check This Out
- My Interview With National Review Online
- Embryonic Stem Cell Research Well Funded by Privat...
Subscribe to
Posts [Atom]
23 Comments:
Yes, where IS it? I was just wondering about that too.
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
More to the point what has happened to MS in the meantime? He has been very quiet and he has not revealed whether or not Terri's remains have been interred.
That is not all, there are some questions that need to be raised about the manner in which DCF investigations were stifled at higher levels. When the papers were released by Judge Death, he released one that was a complaint laid by staff at Morton Plant hospital. The complaint just happened to be that in 2003 MS had attempted yet again to prevent Theresa from receiving antibiotics. The alleged investigation claimed that she was in minimal danger and they closed the case without a proper investigation.
Yes, there are many answers that need to be given. The autopsy is only a part of what we need to know.
Not to mention that M. Schiavo is apparently violating a court order by refusing to disclose to the Schindlers the location of Terri's remains.
But then, Judge Greer has never really forced Mr. Schiavo to comply with court orders or mandatory statutory law, including skipping mandatory annual reports for three years and not attending depositions.
The coroner is definitely taking his time, but I think what will happen is nothing in the autopsy report is going to prove one way or the other how Terri became brain-damaged.
Focusing on it obscures the fact the so-called husband had no right to have her killed.
Well, this depends. For example, if her brain wasn't liquid, I think it could raise quite a ruckus. Moreover, in my view, Michael wasn't the real problem. Courts are supposed to protect people like Terri and they didn't.
The point of demanding the autopsy is to keep people from forgetting.
As my late cousin (who was a victim of modern bio-ethics and got me interested in the subjects of this blog) used to say: "We deal with gangs of street kids; what are we doing about gangs of judges and lawyers?" Imo, Greer was favoring Michael's lawyer, probably for political reasons that plague the legal profession most everywhere.
Wesley,
interesting comments here. I am really anxious to hear the autopsy report because it might change my focus and writings on the issue. I want to concentrate on writing up something on bulimia and anorexia that is not full of medical jargon but will give the facts.
I had a sister who became anorexic in her late 20s. A month has now passed since her death due to bone cancer that had remained undiagnosed until the last 6 weeks of her life. Those six weeks left me feeling very distraught because I knew that there was nothing that could be done. Even worse is the fact that she was in pain and she was unable to eat and drink and still the doctors did not manage to diagnose her cancer in time to save her life. She was too fragile for chemotherapy since her weight had dropped to an alarmingly low level (39 kg when admitted to hospital)
Wesley,
interesting comments here. I am really anxious to hear the autopsy report because it might change my focus and writings on the issue. I want to concentrate on writing up something on bulimia and anorexia that is not full of medical jargon but will give the facts.
I had a sister who became anorexic in her late 20s. A month has now passed since her death due to bone cancer that had remained undiagnosed until the last 6 weeks of her life. Those six weeks left me feeling very distraught because I knew that there was nothing that could be done. Even worse is the fact that she was in pain and she was unable to eat and drink and still the doctors did not manage to diagnose her cancer in time to save her life. She was too fragile for chemotherapy since her weight had dropped to an alarmingly low level (39 kg when admitted to hospital)
Maggie. I am very sorry for your loss. I wonder sometimes, whether women receive less prompt diagnoses of serious ailments because some doctors believe their problems are emotional rather than physical. I know some feminists say this is so.
Where is the Autopsy?
The Medical Examiner is currently taking a refresher course in "Creative Writing".
Stephen
Where is Terri's Autopsy?
The Medical Examiner is taking a refresher course in "Creative Writing".
The results are expected to be announced tomorrow.
Ten cents says the results will back the "loving husband's" claims or will be inconclusive.
Autopsy results are in. I hope this brings peace to both sides of the family. Although I feel for the parents, having a daughter myself...I have seen many situations where family members grasp at straws...and/or try to blame others for a situation.
As far as M Schiavo releasing place of Terri's burial...in a sense...I can not blame him...even if it is against court orders. If Terri's parents are notified of her final resting place...would they create a 'circus-like' atmosphere in the cemetary where Terri is placed? Would they try to dig up the urn? Would they have media come with them to the cemetary? I do pray that there is healing with both sides of this family. I have a feeling that Terr's parents, again, will not accept ANY proofopposite of what they think. I feel that, again, they will continue to seek opinions, contrary to any other findings...just to hear what they really want to hear. I truly emphathize with them...no one may really find out what caused Terri to collapse...but I honestly feel that Michael Schiavo is innocent of any wrong doing...which may have caused her collapse. I pray for peace for all concerned...May Terri rest in 'peace'
Inquiring minds now know.
Does this change you mind about any claims you have made? If so, which ones? Could be you specific?
If not, why not?
I heard something on a newscast the other day that M Schiavo has not buried Terri's ashes yet-that's why the Schindlers has not heard from him yet...Have yet to hear anything more about it.
Personally, I feel for both sides. I have been in a similar aituation where one loved one sees something different in the brain-injured child than what another loved one sees. It all depends on the mindset of each person and the willingness to accept what is real, not what we would wish for. The similar situation I wrote about concerns a brain injured child. One parent accepted what the doctors were saying about reflexes and responses being 'automatic'...the other parent viewed each move of the brain injured child as a meaningful and purposeful move.
Sometimes being in denial keeps us from feeling pain...pain of loss, etc. I do believe that the Schindlers have been in denial for a long time. I have alot of compassion for these people...Michael, as well.
I do hope that some of the Schindler's supporters can help them through the 'acceptance' part of their grief. I pray that these supporters do not aggravate the situation by pushing them into more years of denial by goading them into years of litigation, which keeps the Schindlers from coming to terms with everything.
Although I supported the same view M Schiavo had....I do sympathize with the Schindlers and I do hope that they can finally come to terms with this trajedy.
By the way...I have a severly brain damaged sister who is in her late 30s. (she was born normal) She wears diapers,has mentality of a 2 year old, can walk, has cerebal palsy,seizures, can see, but does not communicate verbally. She lived in a group home until my family decided they have had enough of the lack of care in one of these homes...we were like M Schiavo...we were the homes worst nightmare...my sister was not getting the care she needed....her teeth would not get brushed daily, dirty ears, etc. This was mostly from lack of staff and lack of quality staff. This can be blamed on the government...budgets have been cut though the years for the disabled and their care. I wish the right-to-lifers would create havoc concerning the budget cuts for the care of the disabled...like they did for the Schindler-Schiavo case. They kept mentioning the rights of the disabled...well how are they helping them now? My sister and many others have not seen their help or heard their voices or have not heard them daily on the news like we did for Terri's case.
I'm off my soap box now...
ANYBODY who has treated his in-laws the way Michael Schiavo has has something seriously wrong with him.
This is NOT normal, and I am sick and tired of apologists trying to justify his every actions.
This guy is NO saint, and quit pretending that he is.
Best piece ever on the Schiavo case is the brilliant essay by Joan Didion in the New York Review of Books for June 9.
She knows exactly what the case was about.
Susan,
Perhaps Michael is no saint. But then who is.
Why is it that throughout the ordeal people tried to be symapthetic with the Schindlers, but not a similar effort toward Michael? From my vantage point close by, he acted, on balance, more responsibly than the Schindler's.
To take one example: They called him a murderer . . . but only after he didn't give them some of the settlement. They told the court during the trial that Michael was a wonderful husband . . . until he didn't give them part of the settlement. Why didn't the press ever call them on this?
It is interesting, too, to as whether this could have happened had Terri been Terry. I think the answer is not.
If a mother wanted to bring her 40 year old PVS son home, even if he had wished to die, the public would think her morbid.
Finally, have you all read the guardian ad litem report (http://abstractappeal.com/schiavo/WolfsonReport.pdf)? The parents, at court, made it clear that they didn't care what Terri's wishes were. By their light she should not be allowed to die, period.
You are incorrect. Robert Wendland's mother fought his wife over the same issue in California a few years ago. She won in the CA Supreme Court, mostly because Robert had a somewhat higher level of functioning.
Unfortunately the case does not dispute my claim in two ways. One, RW was not PVS. Indeed, that is a gross understatement. He was arguably retarded, but FAR from PVS.
Two, my claim was not that some mom might not want to save her child (especially if he is not PVS), it was whether "this could have happened had Terri been Terry."
Perhaps I should have been clearer about what "this" meant. But since we were talking about Terri Schiavo, I assume its referent was clear. "This" meant the circus, the claims, and the governmental intervention. Would the plight of Terry Schiavo have been on everyone's lips? Would Bill Frist have diagnosed his case after watching a video made by his mom? would Father Pavone or Randall Terry have gathered in California? I think not.
Why? Well, I doubt most readers knew of Wendland.
I am still curious whether the autopsy changed your views at all about the case, and, if so, how. I would have thought it would have made some difference. I would have thought that anyone especially curious about the autopsy results would have likely have had at least some of their views changed by them.
Wes,
I am certain that there was medical neglect for my sister, but I disagree with the analysis of the feminists. You see one of the doctors who dismissed my sister was a female gastroenterologist who performed an endoscopy. My sister had gone to this doctor because she was not able to have any fluid or eat. The doctor noted stomach inflammation due to dehydration and gave her the trite advice to go home and drink plenty of fluids. This is on a par with being advised to go home and take two asprin when seeking help after a foreign object had entered into my knee (yes that happened to me in Canberra. I was not aware that anything had entered my knee, but knew that I had knelt on something - and yes the resident at the hospital told me to go home and take two asprin for the excruciating pain. It turned out that a sewing needle was embedded in my knee).
Whilst it is true that a lot of women's problems are dismissed, there are times when the cause is in fact hard to pin down. This is what also happened because it turned out that the bone cancer was the primary, not secondary cause. What really upset me though was learning that the doctor did not bother doing a bone scan at an earlier stage when she first began complaining of pain in her back. This form of cancer is detectable with a bone scan.
HHL Terri was not PVS she was in the higher minimally conscious state. She was cognitively aware because the autopsy proved that the portion of her brain that controlled thought and feeling was intact.
Stop apologising for a sadistic wife abuser. There is more than one form of abuse. Physical abuse is not the major type of abuse in this case. It is psychological abuse that was perpetrated over a 15 year period. It is truly disgusting when people continue to support this many with an obvious personality disorder.
Post a Comment
<< Home