Final word awaited in Schiavo case
Husband plans to remove wife's feeding tube today

Orlando Sentinel

Originally published February 22, 2005

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Unless a court grants her parents another delay,
Michael Schiavo plans to remove the feeding tube keeping his wife
alive early this afternoon, allowing the severely brain-damaged
woman to die.

An attorney for Schiavo said he is authorized to remove the life
support for his wife as soon as the 2nd District Court of Appeal
issues an order that finalizes its last ruling against his in-laws
in their seven-year legal battle to keep their daughter alive.

Yesterday, the Lakeland court said it would release the order, known
as a mandate, at 1 p.m. today.

Exactly what the order will say could prove critical. But Schiavo's
attorney was confident it would be a perfunctory ruling sending the
case back to the trial judge, who has repeatedly ruled that Terri
Schiavo would reject the artificial life support that has kept her
alive for 15 years.

If so, attorney George Felos said, Michael Schiavo will immediately
withdraw his wife's feeding tube.

"I will not comment on the mechanism, but it's fair to say the tube
will come out as soon as the mandate is issued," Felos said
yesterday.

But it will not happen without a fight from Terri Schiavo's parents,
Bob and Mary Schindler. Their attorney, David Gibbs, adamantly
disagrees that Michael Schiavo can have his wife's artificial
feedings discontinued without another court order and vowed to seek
contempt charges if he proceeds.

Gibbs made that promise yesterday. He also filed an emergency
request asking Pinellas Circuit Judge George Greer to bar the tube's
removal until the Schindlers resolve several long-standing issues
they have pending in his courtroom.

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