Terri Schiavo has died at the age of 41 — some two weeks after a court ordered the removal of her feeding tube, sparking frantic and fruitless court appeals, political controversy and a debate over constitutional issues.
The PHYSICAL part of this controversy has ended but it’s likely a new POLITICAL phase — entailing more comments from Congressional leaders, politicians, intraparty tensions and recriminations — has just begun.
Details via MSNBC:
PINELLAS PARK, Fla. – Nearly two weeks after a court ordered her feeding tube removed, and after multiple attempts by her parents to get the order lifted, Terri Schiavo passed away on Thursday at the age of 41.
Schiavo died at the Pinellas Park hospice where she lay for years while her husband and her parents fought over her fate in the nation’s longest, most bitter right-to-die dispute.
AP adds:
Schiavo, 41, died quietly in a Pinellas Park hospice 13 days after her feeding tube was removed despite extraordinary intervention by Florida lawmakers, Congress and President Bush efforts that were rebuffed at every turn by the courts.
Her death was confirmed to The Associated Press by Michael Schiavo’s attorney, George Felos, and announced to reporters outside her hospice by a family adviser.
It is with great sadness that it’s been reported to us that Terri Schiavo has passed away,” said Paul O’Donnell, a spokesman for the Schindlers. He said her parents would be making a statement later Thursday.
David Gibbs III, lawyer for Schiavo’s parents Bob and Mary Schindler, said outside the hospice that the parents were grieving in private. Terri Schiavo’s siblings, Bobby Schindler and Suzanne Vitadamo, were in the room with her until 10 minutes before she died, Gibbs said.
“This is indeed a sad day for the nation, for the family. Their faith in God remains strong,” Gibbs said. “God loves Terry more than they do. She is at peace.”
Dawn Kozsey, 47, a musician who was among those outside Schiavo’s hospice, wept when she learned of the woman’s death.
“Words cannot express the rage I feel,” she said. “Is my heart broken for this? Yes.”
A small group of activists sang religious hymns outside the hospice, raising their hands to the sky and closing their eyes.
In Tallahassee, Senate President Tom Lee, R-Brandon, stopped debate on a bill to announce Schiavo’s death.
“Regardless of your perspective on end of life issues, it is a very sad moment and it is a very reflective moment for a lot of us and I think it would appropriate to have a moment of silence in her honor,” Lee told the Senate.
Sen. Daniel Webster, who unsuccessfully sought support for a bill written to keep Schiavo alive, stood with his eyes closed. Behind him Sen. Gary Siplin, who voted against the bill, held his hands out palm up and also closed his eyes.
Who was Terri Schiavo? The Washington Post has this detailed profile.
NOTE: This is being done as TMV gets ready to leave his hotel in CT for the airport. Our longer post on this will be done tomorrow but our GUEST BLOGGERS may have some thoughts on this issue today.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.