- LAKELAND - An appeals court
has stepped in to at least temporarily block a man's right-to-die fight
with Gov. Jeb Bush over a new law restoring a feeding tube to his brain-damaged
wife.
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- Bush had faced a Monday deadline to justify the constitutionality
of the law but that is gone and Michael Schiavo now must explain to the
state appeals court by Tuesday why his challenge should be on a fast track.
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- The 2nd District Court of Appeal issued an indefinite
stay late Friday after Circuit Judge Douglas Baird lifted another stay
to allow the challenge to move forward.
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- Schiavo has been fighting his in-laws in court for years
for the right to remove his wife Terri's feeding tube, saying she would
not want to be kept alive artificially. She suffered severe brain damage
in 1990 when her heart temporarily stopped, cutting off oxygen to her brain.
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- Attorneys for the governor contend Michael Schiavo's
lawsuit should not be allowed to move ahead until after he serves legal
papers on the governor.
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- "I'm not dragging my feet," Bush said after
filing the appeal. "I think it's appropriate in something that is
a matter of life and death that the procedures that we believe are the
appropriate ones should take place."
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- Bush compared his position to the "very deliberate"
legal work done before any execution, saying he "wants to make sure
that innocent life is protected We go the extra mile."
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- Calls for comment to Michael Schiavo's attorney Saturday
was not returned.
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- Pat Anderson, attorney for Terri Schiavo's parents, Bob
and Mary Schindler, said her "life continues to be threatened by those
forces who want to see her die from starvation and dehydration. We are
once again grateful that the Governor is doing everything in his power
to protect Terri's life."
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- Terri Schiavo went without water and nutrition for six
days before the Legislature and Bush stepped in last month to have the
tube reinserted.
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- Florida courts had repeatedly affirmed the right of Michael
Schiavo to remove the feeding tube.
- http://www.sacbee.com/24hour/nation/story/1053592p-7407554c.html
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