Terri Schiavo's parents: Medical information isn't being shared
 
March 26, 2004
 
By Mitch Stacy
 
The Associated Press
 
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Clearwater, Florida - The husband of a severely brain-damaged woman is violating a court order by not sharing enough medical information about the woman with her parents, their attorney told a judge Friday.

Bob and Mary Schindler say Michael Schiavo, who is the legal guardian of their 40-year-old incapacitated daughter, Terri, will not allow them details of her medical condition, despite a 1996 judge's ruling requiring it.

But an attorney for Michael Schiavo countered that the husband has complied with the order and has shared 'sufficient' information with the Schindlers through attorneys, which he said is the accepted protocol.

The Schindlers asked Judge George W. Greer to hold a hearing later during which Michael Schiavo would defend himself against contempt-of-court charges.

Greer said he will decide as early as Monday whether to proceed with that hearing.

Terri Schiavo's family said her caregivers have been instructed by Michael Schiavo not to talk to them about her condition.

And they say they are not getting sufficient and timely information from his attorneys.

"We've been fighting this for eight years," said her brother, Bob Schindler Jr.

Greer did agree there needs to be a more efficient way for the Schindlers to get medical information about their daughter, who lives in a Clearwater nursing home.

The issue underscores the animosity between the Schindlers and Michael Schiavo, who was not present Friday.

The two sides have fought each other in court for years over whether Terri Schiavo's feeding tube should be removed so she can die.

Michael Schiavo contends his wife would not have wanted to be kept alive artificially.

The Schindlers doubt she had any such end-of-life wishes and believe her condition could improve with therapy.

Six days after a judge ordered the feeding tube removed in October, the Florida Legislature intervened and hastily passed a law giving Governor Jeb Bush authority to order the tube reinserted.

Michael Schiavo then sued the governor, claiming the new law is unconstitutional. That case is pending.

Terri Schiavo has been in what court-appointed doctors call a "persistent vegetative state" since her heart stopped briefly in 1990, likely due to a chemical imbalance.