Michael Schiavo

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Michael Richard Schiavo (pronounced /ˈʃaɪvoʊ/; born April 3, 1963) was the American husband of Terri Schiavo, who became a public figure in a national debate over end-of-life issues. Eight years after his wife's collapse into a coma, he led a seven-year but ultimately successful and controversial campaign to remove her feeding tube after she was diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Terri's collapse 3 Relationship with Terri's parents 4 Malpractice suit 5 Legal efforts to remove feeding tube 6 Pressure to cede control 7 Aftermath 8 Remarriage 9 Book 10 References 11 See also

[edit] Early life

Schiavo is the youngest of five brothers in an Italian Lutheran home. He attended Bucks County Community College, in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He met Theresa Schindler in a sociology class in 1982. He found her attractive and they began dating. Schiavo proposed five months later and the couple were married on November 10, 1984. They lived in Pennsylvania at the beginning of their marriage, and Michael Schiavo worked as a restaurant manager.

In 1986, the couple relocated to St. Petersburg, Florida because of Terri's job. Michael had several different jobs during this time and was sometimes unemployed.

[edit] Terri's collapse

Articles relating to the Terri Schiavo case
Terri Schiavo Michael Schiavo Timeline Medical background Public opinion and activism Government involvement Palm Sunday Compromise Schiavo memo Persistent vegetative state Living will Not Dead Yet March for Life
Other people involved
James E. King Michael Baden Randall Terry William Hammesfahr George Greer more
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On February 25, 1990, Terri collapsed at home. Michael called 9-1-1 and said he was asleep at the time and was awakened by the noise of her fall. Terri had suffered brain damage and would require rehabilitation and constant care.

On June 18, 1990, Schiavo was appointed as his wife's guardian. He and the Schindlers managed her care and organized a fundraiser so that Terri could be flown to California for experimental treatment. The couple returned to Florida and Michael placed Terri in a rehabilitation facility. He later received a nursing degree.

[edit] Relationship with Terri's parents

From 1990 to 1993, Michael and the Schindlers enjoyed an amicable relationship. ^[1] The Schindlers even allowed Michael to live rent-free in their condominium for several months. During this time, the Schindlers actively encouraged Michael to "get on with his life". He was encouraged by the Schindlers to date, and he introduced his in-law family to women he was dating.^[2]On June 18, 1990, the court appointed Michael Schiavo as Terri's legal guardian; this appointment was not disputed by the Schindlers at the time.^[3]

While their initial relationship was cooperative, a conversation on February 14, 1993, over the malpractice award did much to rupture the relationship, which continued to deteriorate as it became clear that their opinions over whether or not Terri should be allowed to continue living were completely different.

[edit] Malpractice suit

In 1992, Michael, on behalf of his wife and himself, brought a medical malpractice lawsuit against G. Stephen Igel, the obstetrician who had been treating Schiavo for infertility, claiming that his failure to test for an eating disorder had led to her current condition. During the trial, at least one of Schiavo's friends testified that they believed she was bulimic because after meals out, she always immediately excused herself to go to the bathroom.^[4] Michael also said that he had noticed some peculiar eating habits (such as drinking about a gallon of iced tea a day, eating a huge omelette or practically all of a pizza on Sundays) but had received no indication that she had any kind of psychological problem or eating disorder.^[5] At the conclusion of the trial, the jury found for the Schiavos and awarded Mrs. Schiavo $1,600,000 in damages and Michael $600,000 for loss of consortium. While on appeal, the case was settled (May 1992) for $700,000 and $300,000, respectively.^[6] The court placed Mrs. Schiavo's award in a trust fund, which was controlled by a third party and covered her medical and legal expenses.

[edit] Legal efforts to remove feeding tube

In May 1998, Michael Schiavo petitioned to discontinue life support for his wife. Ultimately, Michael did not directly make the decision about whether Terri should live or die, though he had expressed, publicly and unequivocally, that he believed her life should be terminated, according to the wishes she expressed to him. He petitioned the court, asking it to act as Terri's surrogate and determine what she would decide to do if she were able. Based on Schiavo's testimony that during a conversation with Terri before her collapse, she had expressed the wish never to be kept alive artificially, the court determined that Terri would not wish to continue life-prolonging measures. Some of Terri's friends and family members have stated publicly their belief that Terri would never have expressed a wish to be removed from life support. However, Michael's credible testimony to the trial judge, his position as guardian, and the doctors' diagnosis of Terri's persistent vegetative stage, led ultimately, after many appeals, to the termination of Terri's life.

[edit] Pressure to cede control

Aside from the publicity the case received, and the extended court proceedings, Michael was pressured to cede his guardianship of Terri in other ways. He received death threats. On March 11, 2005, media tycoon Robert Herring (who believes that stem cell research could have cured Schiavo's condition) offered $1 million (USD) to Michael Schiavo if he agreed to cede his guardianship to his wife's parents. The offer was rejected.

Department of Children and Families (DCF) investigators stated that there were "no indicators" of abuse in any of the cases and concluding that "[t]he preponderance of the evidence shows that Michael Schiavo followed doctors' orders [regarding] Ms. Schiavo's diagnosis of being in a persistent vegetative state and that he provided her with appropriate care."

After many challenges from the Schindlers, "Terri's Law" and its overturning, and yet more challenges, the case began to receive more publicity around the start of 2005. As the last of the Schindlers' legal options ran out, Terri's feeding tube was removed on March 18, 2005 for the third and final time. Congress passed and President Bush signed a bill (known as the Palm Sunday Compromise) that gave federal courts jurisdiction in the case, but federal courts declined to order the reinsertion of the feeding tube. Terri Schiavo died on March 31, 2005.

[edit] Aftermath

In December 2005, Michael Schiavo opened TerriPAC, a political action committee "to restore personal freedoms and individual rights." He was a lifelong Republican, but changed his affiliation to Democratic not long after the vote.^{[citation needed]} At one time, Schiavo was also a blogger on the high-traffic left-wing political blog, Daily Kos. Michael Schiavo shut down TerriPac in the summer of 2007, and no longer blogs at Daily Kos.

[edit] Remarriage

On January 23, 2006, Schiavo married his long-term fiancée, Jodi Centonze, whom he met in a dentist's office in 1993, according to Schiavo's book. They have two children, both born prior to their marriage and prior to Terri's death: the first was born in the fall of 2002, and the second was born in the spring of 2004.

Schiavo lived with Centonze for approximately 13 years before the marriage, during much of the time that Terri was hospitalized. During that time Schiavo had repeatedly refused to divorce Terri and marry Centonze, despite being begged to do so by Terri's parents, who would then have become Terri's guardians.

[edit] Book

• Terri: The Truth (with Michael Hirsh) (2006) ISBN 0-525-94946-1

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• Terri Schiavo timeline