(Actual article title: "Michael Schiavo grants Schindlers visitation rights")

(Note: How kind of her 'husband' to 'allow' visitation, and then sneak this fragile, almost starved woman from hospital treatment back to the hospice -- without her REAL family's knowledge -- where she's been held hostage for three years, where he almost succeeded in the third attempt to kill her, and where he intends to succeed yet.)

October 22, 2003 7:00 PM

BayNews9.com

The husband of Terri Schiavo, a brain-damaged woman at the center of a Florida right-to-die controversy, dropped his objections Wednesday to letting her parents visit her, attorneys said.

It was not immediately clear when Bob and Mary Schindler and Terri's siblings would be allowed to visit. They will not be entitled to updates on her medical condition.

Terri was moved late Tuesday to Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater after Gov. Jeb Bush ordered her feeding tube reinserted.

The parents and Terri's husband and legal guardian, Michael Schiavo, have been at the center of a lengthy and contentious battle over whether Terri should be kept alive indefinitely in a persistent vegetative state with the feeding tube, as the parents want, or allowed to die, as the husband wants.

A court ruled that the tube could be removed last week, but the state Legislature quickly passed a law giving the governor the right to intervene.

In another development, David Demers, the chief judge of Pinellas County Circuit Court, ordered lawyers for both sides to reach an agreement within five days to designate an independent guardian for Terri, as required under the law signed by the governor.

The new guardian would become Terri Schiavo's advocate in legal proceedings, but Michael Schiavo would remain the decision-maker.

If an agreement cannot be reached, Demers said, he will appoint Dr. Jay Wolfson, a professor of health and law at Stetson University, as the guardian. Wolfson also works for the College of Public Health at Florida State University and the College of Medicine at the University of South Florida.

The law passed by the state Legislature Tuesday and quickly signed by Bush authorized the governor to issue an executive order reinserting the feeding tube and said a "guardian ad litem" should be appointed to the case.

A guardian ad litem is a person appointed by the court to represent the best interests of one or more children in a court action that may affect them. "Ad litem" is Latin for "for this litigation."

http://www.baynews9.com/site/NewsStory.cfm?storyid=26575

Photo: Terri was transported by ambulance to Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater on Tuesday.

http://www.baynews9.com/img_archive/news/2003/October/22/sch1.jpg

Michael Schiavo's attorney George Felos

http://www.baynews9.com/img_archive/news/2003/October/20/terri4.jpg

Additional helpful information:

The Sixth Judicial Circuit of Florida Judges' Addresses and Phone Numbers

David A. Demers (Chief Judge) Rm. 400, 545 First Avenue North St. Petersburg, FL 33701 727-582-7882 ddemers@co.pinellas.fl.us  Appeals division

George W. Greer Rm. 484, 315 Court Street Clearwater, FL 33756 727-464-3933 ggreer@co.pinellas.fl.us  Circuit Probate division, section 3

courts@jud6.org

http://www.jud6.org/Addresses/JudgesPhoneNumbers/judgeaddressandphonelist.htm

Email addresses from:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/976228/replies?comment=20