Terri's family suffer new defeat, will appeal to Supreme Court again

ATLANTA, March 30, 2005 (CNA) “ The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has perhaps dashed the last hope for brain-damaged Terri Schiavo, who has been without food or water since her feeding tube was removed by court order on March 18th.

For the fourth time, the court rejected an appeal by Bob and Mary Schindler, Terri's parents, to re-hear their case for their daughter's life in light of new evidence.

The rejected petition stated that the Atlanta court violated a Supreme Court precedent requiring them to consider the full record of the case and not just proceedings from the state courts.

It added that new evidence needed to be considered before the courts could render a truly informed decision.

David Gibbs, attorney for the Schindlers said that he could prove to the federal court that "the 'evidence' supporting Terri's alleged wishes is not credible, and that a reasonable fact finder would hold -- under any standard of proof -- that her wishes were to the contrary."

The courts had previously sided with Michael Schiavo, Terri's husband, who has staged a nearly decade-long battle claiming that his wife would have never wanted to be kept alive in her current state.

Despite today's devastating setback, Terri's family is still holding on to prayerful hope for their daughter's life.

Terri's father told reporters that, "She still looks pretty darn good under the circumstances," but added, "You can see the impact of no food and water for 12 days. Her bodily functions are still working. We still have her."

Terri Schiavo's parents will appeal their latest judicial defeat to the U.S. Supreme Court. Robert and Mary Schindler met with their legal and spiritual advisors Wednesday afternoon following the rejection of their latest pleading.

Gary McCullough, director of the Christian Communication Network and a spokesman for Schiavo's parents announced that the family will continue their legal battle. McCullough told Cybercast News Service "I am in the room surrounded by family members right now and they are going to appeal it."

"They've been on the phone with the lawyers a lot and they are going to appeal it. The lawyers have been working, it seems like, around the clock, because we hardly ever see them," he said.