The Talk Show American

THE TALK SHOW AMERICAN: 03/13/2005 - 03/20/2005

Saturday, March 19, 2005

Terri: 'I Waaaannt [to Live]'

A mentally disabled woman whose court-ordered starvation-execution began Friday attempted to contradict her estranged husband's claim that she wants to die hours before her feeding tube was disconnected, an eyewitness is claiming.

Barbara Weller, an attorney for Terri Schiavo's parents, told reporters Friday afternoon that during her visit earlier in the day she told Ms. Schiavo: "Terri, if you would just say, 'I want to live,' all of this will be over."

According to pro-life activist Randall Terry, who recounted the scene to radio host Sean Hannity, Schiavo tried desperately to repeat Weller's words.

"'I waaaaannt ...,' Schiavo allegedly said, in a prolonged yell that had police stationed nearby running into her hospice room.

"She just started yelling, 'I waaaannt, I waaaannt,'" Terry said, according to Weller's account.

At that point police ejected Weller, he said.

Medical Facts About Terri Schiavo

Many people have referred to the �medical evidence� that Terri has little to no brain matter remaining. FACT: The only way to determine such a thing accurately is with an MRI or PET scan. Neither have been done, and they have been disallowed in her case per Michael Schiavo�s instructions.

Many people have spoken of the doctors who have �evaluated� Terri. FACT: The primary evaluator, Dr. Ronald Cranford is a board-certified neurologist who specializes in PVS cases. Why do I mention this? Because he has also been on the board of the Euthanasia Society of America and has ties to the Hemlock Society. He is called as an expert witness for euthanasia in �Right to Die� cases. Dr. Cranford has also advocated denial of SPOON-FED feeding.

These are just basic facts. Please continue reading�this is CRUCIAL to this debate on whether or not she�s �brain dead� or whether she has been accurately diagnosed.

BAD MEDICINE And, quite apart from the question of Terri�s therapy and care, it is entirely likely that Terri has never been properly diagnosed. Terri is usually described as being in a Persistent Vegetative State (PVS), and indeed Judge Greer ruled as a finding of fact that she is PVS; but this diagnosis and finding were arrived at in a way that has many neurologists expressing surprise and dismay.

I have spent the past ten days recruiting and interviewing neurologists who are willing to come forward and offer affidavits or declarations concerning new testing and examinations for Terri. In addition to the 15 neurologists� affidavits Gibbs had in time to present in court, I have commitments from over 30 others who are willing to testify that Terri should have new and additional testing, and new examinations by unbiased neurologists. Almost 50 neurologists all say the same thing: Terri should be reevaluated, Terri should be reexamined, and there are grave doubts as to the accuracy of Terri�s diagnosis of PVS. All of these neurologists are board-certified; a number of them are fellows of the prestigious American Academy of Neurology; several are professors of neurology at major medical schools.

So how can Judge Greer ignore the opinions of so many qualified neurologists, some of whom are leaders in the field? The answer is that Michael Schiavo, his attorney George Felos, and Judge Greer already have the diagnosis they want.

Terri�s diagnosis was arrived at without the benefit of testing that most neurologists would consider standard for diagnosing PVS. One such test is MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). MRI is widely used today, even for ailments as simple as knee injuries � but Terri has never had one. Michael has repeatedly refused to consent to one. The neurologists I have spoken to have reacted with shock upon learning this fact. One such neurologist is Dr. Peter Morin. He is a researcher specializing in degenerative brain diseases, and has both an M.D. and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Boston University.

In the course of my conversation with Dr. Morin, he made reference to the standard use of MRI and PET (Positron Emission Tomography) scans to diagnose the extent of brain injuries. He seemed to assume that these had been done for Terri. I stopped him and told him that these tests have never been done for her; that Michael had refused them.

There was a moment of dead silence.

�That�s criminal,� he said, and then asked, in a tone of utter incredulity: �How can he continue as guardian? People are deliberating over this woman�s life and death and there�s been no MRI or PET?� He drew a reasonable conclusion: �These people [Michael Schiavo, George Felos, and Judge Greer] don�t want the information.�

Dr. Morin explained that he would feel obligated to obtain the information in these tests before making a diagnosis with life and death consequences. I told him that CT (Computer-Aided Tomography) scans had been done, and were partly the basis for the finding of PVS. The doctor retorted, �Spare no expense, eh?� I asked him to explain the comment; he said that a CT scan is a much less expensive test than an MRI, but it �only gives you a tenth of the information an MRI does.� He added, �A CT scan is useful only in pretty severe cases, such as trauma, and also during the few days after an anoxic (lack of oxygen) brain injury. It�s useful in an emergency-room setting. But if the question is ischemic injury [brain damage caused by lack of blood/oxygen to part of the brain] you want an MRI and PET. For subsequent evaluation of brain injury, the CT is pretty useless unless there has been a massive stroke.�

Other neurologists have concurred with Dr. Morin�s opinion. Dr. Thomas Zabiega, who trained at the University of Chicago, said, �Any neurologist who is objective would say �Yes�� to the question, �Should Terri be given an MRI?�


But in spite of the lack of advanced testing, such as an MRI, attorney George Felos has claimed that Terri�s cerebral cortex has �liquefied,� and doctors for Michael Schiavo have claimed, on the basis of the CT scans, that parts of Terri�s cerebral cortex �have been replaced by fluid.� The problem with such contentions is that the available evidence can�t support them. Dr. Zabiega explained that �a CT scan can�t resolve the kind of detail needed� to make such a pronouncement: �A CT scan is like a blurry photograph.� Dr. William Bell, a professor of neurology at Wake Forest University Medical School, agrees: �A CT scan doesn�t give much detail. In order to see it on a CT, you have to have massive damage.� Is it possible that Terri has that sort of �massive� brain damage? According to Dr. Bell, that isn�t likely. Sometimes, he said, even patients who are PVS have a �normal or near normal� MRI.

So why hasn�t an MRI been done for Terri? That question has never been satisfactorily answered. George Felos has argued that an MRI can�t be done because of thalamic implants that were placed in Terri�s skull during the last attempt at therapy, dating back to 1992. But Felos�s contention ignores the fact that these implants could be removed. Indeed, the doctor who put them in instructed Michael to have them removed. Michael has never done so.

The most obvious possible explanation for what would otherwise be inexplicable behavior is that Michael Schiavo, George Felos, and Judge Greer don�t want to admit any information that would upset the diagnosis they already have. Dr. Morin, when told that Michael had refused an MRI, and that Judge Greer had confirmed the decision, said: �He refused a non-invasive test? People trying to do the right thing want the best and most complete information available. We don�t have that in Terri�s case.� Dr. Bell agreed with this assessment, saying, �It seems as though they�re fearful of any additional information.�

THE CRANFORD DIAGNOSISDoctors for Michael Schiavo have said that an MRI and PET are not necessary for Terri because PVS is primarily a �clinical� diagnosis, that is, one arrived at on the basis of examination of the patient, rather than by relying on tests. And the neurologists I have spoken to agree on the clinical nature of the diagnosis, while insisting that advanced tests nonetheless are a necessary part of it. But the star medical witness for Michael Schiavo, Dr. Ronald Cranford of the University of Minnesota, has repeatedly dismissed calls for MRI testing, and his opinion has prevailed.

Dr. Cranford was the principal medical witness brought in by Schiavo and Felos to support their position that Terri was PVS. Judge Greer was obviously impressed by Cranford�s r�sum�: Cranford travels throughout the country testifying in cases involving PVS and brain impairment. He is widely recognized by courts as an expert in these issues, and in some circles is considered �the� expert on PVS. His clinical judgment has carried the day in many cases, so it is relevant to examine the manner in which he arrived at his judgment in Terri�s case. But before that, one needs to know a little about Cranford�s background and perspective: Dr. Ronald Cranford is one of the most outspoken advocates of the �right to die� movement and of physician-assisted suicide in the U.S. today.

In published articles, including a 1997 op-ed in the Minneapolis�St. Paul Star Tribune, he has advocated the starvation of Alzheimer�s patients. He has described PVS patients as indistinguishable from other forms of animal life. He has said that PVS patients and others with brain impairment lack personhood and should have no constitutional rights. Perusing the case literature and articles surrounding the �right to die� and PVS, one will see Dr. Cranford�s name surface again and again. In almost every case, he is the one claiming PVS, and advocating the cessation of nutrition and hydration.

In the cases of Paul Brophy, Nancy Jobes, Nancy Cruzan, and Christine Busalucci, Cranford was the doctor behind the efforts to end their lives. Each of these people was brain-damaged but not dying; nonetheless, he advocated death for all, by dehydration and starvation. Nancy Cruzan did not even require a feeding tube: She could be spoon-fed. But Cranford advocated denying even that, saying that even spoon-feeding constituted �medical treatment� that could be licitly withdrawn.

In cases where other doctors don�t see it, Dr. Cranford seems to have a knack for finding PVS. Cranford also diagnosed Robert Wendland as PVS. He did so in spite of the fact that Wendland could pick up specifically colored pegs or blocks and hand them to a therapy assistant on request. He did so in spite of the fact that Wendland could operate and maneuver an ordinary wheelchair with his left hand and foot, and an electric wheelchair with a joystick, of the kind that many disabled persons (most famously Dr. Stephen Hawking) use. Dr. Cranford dismissed these abilities as meaningless. Fortunately for Wendland, the California supreme court was not persuaded by Cranford�s assessment.

Expert witnesses in court are supposed to be unbiased: disinterested in the outcome of the case. Part of the procedure in qualifying expert witnesses is establishing that they are objective and unbiased. But given Dr. Cranford�s history of advocacy in the �right to die� and euthanasia movements, and given his track record of almost always coming down on the side of PVS and removal of nutrition and hydration, one might question his objectivity. Indeed, the Schindlers� attorneys attempted to do so in the 2002 evidentiary hearing at which Cranford testified, but went unheard. Organizations such as the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide submitted amicus curiae (friend of the court) briefs in the appellate proceedings in Terri�s case, demonstrating Cranford�s bias in detail. But these arguments also seemed to fall on deaf ears.

Some neurologists who also consult in legal cases were not surprised at the handling of Dr. Cranford�s expert testimony. In theory, they said, the expert witness is supposed to be objective, but, as Dr. Bell explained, �the way it really works is that an attorney carefully selects an expert that will give him the outcome he desires.� He related that he has been asked by attorneys to serve as an expert. �I have looked over medical records,� he said, �and told attorneys what I thought.� But on occasion, he said, his opinion was �obviously not what they wanted to hear� and �they moved on to another expert.� Bell acknowledged that Cranford is �a highly accomplished and experienced speaker,� but said that in him the court �likely found a highly prejudiced expert.�

Neurologists who are familiar with diagnosing and treating PVS and other brain injuries have told me that PVS is a notoriously difficult diagnosis to make. It requires a great deal of time spent with the patient over several days or weeks. The reason for this, as Dr. Bell explained, is that brain-injured patients have severely disrupted sleep/wake cycles. Dr. Mack Jones, a neurologist in Ft. Walton Beach, Fla., added that patients with severe brain injury will have greatly varying levels of alertness: �Two independent examiners may get an entirely different impression depending on when and how long he/she has spent performing the examination. For example, one examiner may unknowingly attempt to evaluate the patient during a stage of sleep. Another examiner, by chance, may find a more responsive patient simply because [the patient is] now more aroused.� Dr. Morin concurred, saying that in his experience �the attention of brain-injured patients is very erratic,� and that because of this he has �seen inadequate assessments even by experienced neurologists.� Because of these difficulties, the American Academy of Neurology has made it clear that it can take months for a physician to establish with confidence the diagnosis of PVS. A 1996 British Medical Journal study, conducted at England�s Royal Hospital for Neurodisability, concluded that there was a 43-percent error rate in the diagnosis of PVS. Inadequate time spent by specialists evaluating patients was listed as a contributing factor for the high incidence of errors.

So, did Dr. Cranford, or any of the doctors testifying for Michael Schiavo, spend months evaluating Terri? No. To be fair, none of the doctors appearing for the Schindlers spent months with Terri either. But it is hardly coincidental that the doctors who spent the most time with Terri came to the conclusion that she is not PVS. The doctors brought in by the Schindlers spent approximately 14 hours examining Terri over more than two weeks; their conclusion was that Terri is not PVS, and that she may benefit from therapy.

In marked contrast, Dr. Cranford examined Terri on one occasion, for approximately 45 minutes. Another doctor for Michael Schiavo, Dr. Peter Bambikidis of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio, examined Terri for about half an hour. When Dr. Bell learned of the cursory nature of these exams, he said: �You can�t do this. To make a diagnosis of PVS based on one examination is fallacious.� In Cranford�s examination, described by one witness as �brutal,� he discounted evidence under his own eyes of Terri�s responsiveness. At one point, Dr. Cranford struck Terri very hard on the forehead between her eyes. Terri recoiled and moaned, seemingly in pain. In his court testimony, Cranford dismissed the reaction and moan as a �reflex.�

I asked Dr. Bell if he thought a moan uttered after a painful blow could be a reflex. �It�s highly unlikely,� he replied. He qualified his answer by noting that he had not actually seen the video of the exam, but he believes that the description of Terri�s reaction is not consistent with a reflex. �A moan is not a reflex,� Bell said. �A wince or grimace is not a reflex.�

By the very definition of Persistent Vegetative State, the patient must exhibit no �evidence of awareness of self or environment� or �ability to interact with others.� As one neurologist put it, if a patient shows �any response to the outside world, the patient isn�t in a PVS.� All it takes, according to Dr. Jones, is �only one examiner to discover the presence of higher brain function and the naysayers� opinions are, by the very definition of PVS, null and void.�

As they say, READ IT ALL.

What's REALLY Driving the Death Train for Terri!

EXPLOSIVE Revelations About Judge Greer and Pinellas County "Guardians!"
Is Pinellas County using guardianship as a cover for robbing the handicapped and elderly?

If you had found a way to steal thousands of dollars from wealthy elderly, where would you find the most victims? Yes, Florida is the first state that comes to my mind.
Pinellas County Internal Auditor, Robert W. Melton has been assigned by Florida legislators to address guardianship reform. He says, ��.the practices I have seen in the short time I have been involved in guardianships is shocking. It is time to put an end to unscrupulous practices at the expense of our state's most vulnerable citizens."

In Melton�s own words, "When we have both guardians and judges trying to keep auditors out, we have a system ripe for corruption and fraud."

"Absurd......" was the reaction of George W. Greer, a Pinellas circuit judge who hears probate cases, to Melton's proposal for more openness in guardianships. "I'm at a loss to see what that would accomplish."

It is a system that in practice often serves lawyers over clients. Even as the court's lax oversight allows guardians to neglect their responsibilities, it also permits some lawyers to take unnecessary control of people's lives. � Washington Post, 2003

Friday, March 18, 2005

"Terri Schiavo speaks!"

According to Sherri's sources When the Federal Marshal appeared at the hospice to serve subpoenas, they were accompanied by local police. In serving Terri, she was asked twice, "Do you want to live?" Twice, she responded, "Yes".

Ironically, the policemen outside the hospice reported that she had said, "No". Is there a coverup? Does she speak? There is more to follow.

Sherri called me while intransit to Florida on I-75, begging me to put this up, now.

ATTORNEY WELLER HAS SAID--TERRI IS CRYING.."I WANT TO LIVE"

PRESS RELEASE:
MARCH 18. 2005
2:00 PM EASTERN TIME

ATTORNEY BARBARA WELLER TOLD TERRI THAT THEY WERE GOING TO REMOVE HER
FEEDING TUBE , TERRI BEGAN TO CRY AND TRIED TO SAY "I WANT TO LIVE"
ATTORNEY WELLER SAID SHE HAD A DIFFICULT TIME CALMING TERRI DOWN.

WE NEED PEOPLE TO SURROUND HOSPICE IN PROTEST TO JUDGE GREER'S RULING
STATING HE WILL OVER RIDE FEDERAL SUBPOENA AND WILL REMOVE TERRI'S
FEEDING TUBE IMMEDIATELY.

FOR THOSE WHO CANNOT COME TO FLORIDA...PLEASE CALL YOUR SENATORS.
PLEASE DO NOT STOP YOUR CALLS.

ACTION BY THE PEOPLE MUST TAKE PLACE TO SAVE TERRI FROM JUDICIAL
HOMICIDE.

JUDGE GREER IS WRONG AND IS NOT LISTENING TO CONGRESS.

Fight4Terri @aol.com
www.fight4terri.blogspot.com
Visit Terri's site: www.terrisfight.org

Florida Senate rejects Terri bill

Florida's state House passed a bill today to keep Terri Schiavo alive, but the Senate later defeated a similar measure, casting doubt on a possible compromise one day before the brain-damaged woman's life-sustaining feeding tube is to be removed by court order.

The House bill would block withholding of food and water from patients in a persistent vegetative state who didn't leave a written directive.


The Senate bill, which also could have blocked the court order, would apply only to cases in which families disagreed on the patient's wishes.

The Florida House bill passed 78-37. The Senate bill was rejected 21-16.

The U.S. Congress also was considering legislation to move the case to the federal courts.

In addition, Schiavo's parents, Robert and Mary Schindler, appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and Pinellas County Circuit Court Judge George Greer heard a request from the state to stop removal of the tube.

Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said the state has a responsibility to act.

"It breaks my heart we're in a situation where it's possible this woman could starve to death," the governor said.

Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would delay removal of Schiavo's feeding tube by moving such a case to federal court. Senate Democrats blocked the legislation, but Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said he would try to pass a separate bill.

"If we don't act or if somebody does not act, a living person who has a level of consciousness, who is self-breathing will be starved to death here in the next two weeks," Frist said.

The Florida Legislature's move marked the second time in less than two years the state lawmakers are prepared to intervene in the case.

In 2003, "Terri's Law" enabled Bush to intervene the second time Terri Schiavo's feeding tube was removed. The law later was ruled unconstitutional, however, by the Florida Supreme Court, which said it violated the legal separation between the three branches of government.

Michael Schiavo won a court order in 2000 to have his wife's feeding tube removed, claiming she was in a "persistent vegetative state" and had declared orally she wouldn't want to live in such a condition.

The Schindlers, however, insist their daughter, while severely handicapped, is responsive and demonstrates a strong will to live.

Terri Schiavo is not hooked up to any machines, but she requires the small feeding tube for nourishment and hydration. She collapsed under disputed circumstances Feb. 25, 1990, suffering severe brain damage when her heart stopped momentarily. Michael Schiavo attributes the collapse to an eating disorder, but the Schindlers strongly suspect he tried to strangle her.

The Schindlers have pleaded with Michael Schiavo to divorce their daughter, pointing out he has been living with another woman for 10 years, with whom he has two children..

Florida state Sen. Dan Webster, R-Winter Garden, the bill's sponsor in the Senate, said the new legislation avoids the constitutional problems found in "Terri's Law" -- violation of separation of powers and that it was retroactive and narrowly applied to Schiavo.

But Michael Schiavo's attorney, well-known "right-to-die" lawyer George Felos, predicted the Supreme Court will strike down this law as well.

"This is purely a knee-jerk response to the growing political clout of the far right, and it's tragic, to say the least, that legislators don't have any concern about the constitutionality of the acts they pass," he told the Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Supreme Court rejects Schiavo appeal

Less than 18 hours before Terri Schiavo was scheduled to have her life-sustaining feeding tube removed, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected an emergency appeal by her parents to stop the procedure.

The court rejected the appeal by Bob and Mary Schindler on Thursday, clearing the way for Schiavo's husband, Michael, to have the feeding tube removed Friday -- 15 years after she collapsed from heart failure that led to her brain damage.

President's Statement on Terri Schiavo

The case of Terri Schiavo raises complex issues. Yet in instances like this one, where there are serious questions and substantial doubts, our society, our laws, and our courts should have a presumption in favor of life. Those who live at the mercy of others deserve our special care and concern. It should be our goal as a nation to build a culture of life, where all Americans are valued, welcomed, and protected - and that culture of life must extend to individuals with disabilities.

Chairman of HELP Committee Summonses Terri Schiavo To Testify

**Exclusive Fri Mar 18 2005 00:50:07 ET** The Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pension (HELP) Committee, Mike Enzi (R-Wyoming) has requested Terri Schiavo to testify before his congressional committee, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned. In so doing it triggers legal or statutory protections for the witness, among those protections is that nothing can be done to cause harm or death to this individual.

Members of Congress went to the U.S. Attorney in DC to ask for a temporary restraining order to be issued by a judge, which protects Terri Schiavo from having her life support, including her feeding and hydration tubes, removed... Developing...

Terri's Fight For Life: The Video Clips They Tried to Censor

Here are the video clips of Terri that Greer didn't want you to see (Click Above Link)

Terri was 26 years old when she suffered brain damage from a sudden collapse. Terri receives her food and water by means of a feeding tube. Terri's other bodily functions are physically stable. Terri smiles, laughs and cries. Terri recognizes voices and responds. At times, she vocalizes sounds, trying in her best way to speak. Terri is not a brain dead vegetable as characterized by her husband and legal guardian, Michael Schiavo nor a houseplant as implied by his attorney. Terri is not on a respirator or any artificial life support. She is a living human being and needs to be granted an opportunity to recover. Terri has not had any progressive rehabilitation or arousal therapy in more than ten years.
The following video clips, some of which Terri's family were ordered by the judge not to release, prove that Terri is not in a vegetative state. For the latest updates on her case please visit http://www.terrisfight.org.

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Schiavo Case Moves to Congress

WASHINGTON -- The House of Representatives has stepped in with legislation to delay removal of the feeding tube from a brain-damaged Florida woman whose husband has been given permission by a state court to let her die.

The House acted late Wednesday evening after a Florida appeals court refused, earlier in the day, to block the removal of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube. Her husband has battled her parents over his efforts to allow her to die, which he contends she would prefer rather than live in a vegetative state.
The House bill, passed on a voice vote, would move such a case to federal court. Federal judges have twice turned down efforts by the parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, to move the case out of Florida courts, citing a lack of jurisdiction.

Senate Republicans are introducing a separate bill to give Schiavo and her family standing in federal court, and they hope it can be debated on Thursday, a GOP aide said.

Under the House legislation, a federal judge would decide whether withholding or withdrawing food, fluids or medical treatment from an incapacitated person violates the Constitution or U.S. law.

It would apply only to incapacitated people who had not left directives dealing with being kept alive artificially and for whom a state judge had authorized the withholding of food or medical treatment.

Schiavo, 41, suffered severe brain damage in 1990 when her heart stopped temporarily, and court-appointed doctors say she is in a persistent vegetative state. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, says she told him she would not want to be kept alive artificially. Her parents disagree that was her wish and say she could improve with proper treatment.

Florida Circuit Judge George Greer has granted Michael Schiavo permission to remove the feeding tube, a ruling a state appellate court upheld Wednesday. Without the feeding tube, which the state court allowed to be removed as early as Friday, Terri Schiavo would likely die in one to two weeks.

"What's going on in Florida regarding Terri Schiavo is nothing short of inhumane," said House Judiciary Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., who introduced the bill with Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Fla.

Some House members criticized the bill, which Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., called "a dangerously reckless way to deal with some serious issues."

"It does not deal just with feeding tubes. It would allow intervention in any decision affecting any kind of medical care. Read the bill," Nadler said.

The Florida appeals court said in Wednesday's ruling that the issues the Schindlers' raised were not new ones and had been dealt with previously by numerous courts.

"Not only has Mrs. Schiavo's case been given due process, but few, if any similar cases have ever been afforded this heightened level of process," Chief Judge Chris Altenbernd wrote.

The court also rejected the Department of Children & Families' request for a 60-day stay while that agency investigates allegations that Terri Schiavo has been abused.

The Schindler's planned to ask the Supreme Court to consider whether their daughter's religious freedom and due process rights have been violated.

Fla. House OKs Bill to Keep Schiavo Alive

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The state House passed a bill Thursday that could keep Terri Schiavo alive, less than 24 hours before the severely brain-damaged woman's feeding tube is scheduled to be removed.

The Senate began debating a more limited version of the bill as lawmakers rushed to beat the scheduled removal of Schiavo's feeding tube. The legislative action was part of a last-minute flurry of attempts to save Schiavo's life. Congress was also considering legislation to move the case to the federal courts, Schiavo's parents appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and Florida Circuit Court Judge George Greer scheduled a hearing Thursday to consider a request from the state to halt the removal of the tube.
The House bill would block the withholding of food and water from patients in a persistent vegetative state who didn't leave specific instructions refusing the artificial measure. It passed 78-37.

"This provides a safety net where the government stands up for the vulnerable who don't otherwise have a voice," said Republican Rep. Kevin Ambler.

Hackers target pro-Terri website

The battle over Terri Schindler-Schiavo's life currently raging in the Florida courts, the state Legislature and Congress moved into cyberspace Tuesday when hackers shut down a popular newssite noted for its probing coverage of the ongoing euthanasia case, keeping it inaccessible for over 30 hours.

The Empire Journal, an Internet publication dedicated to exposing government fraud, corruption and abuse of power in New York state, expanded its focus about three months ago to include similar matters that have surfaced in the Terri Schiavo case. Stories have included evidence of Medicare and Medicaid fraud, the refusal of law enforcement at both state and local levels to investigate allegations of abuse perpetrated upon the brain-disabled woman, and � in a major report titled "Schiavogate: The Big Coverup" � evidence of numerous violations of Florida guardianship law, allegedly committed by Pinellas County probate court Judge George Greer, who has been in charge of the case since late 1999.

"It is easy to draw the conclusion that we have hit a major nerve in uncovering vast corruption," said June Maxam and Ginger Berlin, co-publishers of The Empire Journal, in an on-line message to their readers.


Maxam and Berlin said the hacking began last week with a threatening message placed on the site and directed at their coverage of the case. That was followed on Sunday when the "Schiavogate" piece was removed by hackers almost as quickly as it was posted.

Security measures were tightened and the article was republished, but the attacks continued.

On Tuesday, several new articles were posted, including one about Greer's refusal to postpone Terri's court-ordered starvation death pending an investigation by the Florida Department of Children and Families of some 30 allegations of abuse against the brain-disabled woman.

Another piece revealed some disturbingly friendly connections between Terri's estranged husband and legal guardian, Michael Schiavo, and former Pinellas County Sheriff Everett Rice, who is now a member of the Florida House of Representatives. Just before he left office following his election to the state Legislature, Rice hired Schiavo � a registered nurse � to work in the Pinellas County jail.

It also turns out that the mother of Jodi Centonze, Schiavo's live-in girlfriend with whom he has had two children, worked for years for the Pinellas County Sheriff's Department.

Some suggest these connections explain why Rice never investigated the numerous allegations of abuse that Terri's parents, their attorneys and other supporters have lodged against Schiavo over the years.

"The relationship of Rice and Schiavo raises grave questions of alleged impropriety in the Terri Schiavo case and ongoing allegations of conspiracy, collusion and cover-up which have resulted in calls for Gov. Jeb Bush to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the matter and the impaneling of the Grand Jury," wrote Berlin and Maxam.

"Rice's hire of Schiavo came at the same time contentious guardianship proceedings were proceeding in the courtroom of his long-time friend, Sixth Circuit Court Judge George W. Greer, where Schiavo was seeking to end the life of his wife by court order of Greer."

After that article appeared on The Empire Journal, without warning the entire site disappeared. Not only the just-posted pieces were affected � archived articles, too, were removed. Some of these have been recaptured, others may be irretrievably lost.

Maxam told WND whoever did it had to crack the firewall of their server and other websites could be in danger. After transferring the site to a dedicated server, by Wednesday afternoon The Empire Journal was back up and running.

The two activists-turned-publishers intend to "remain vigilant in investigating and reporting on Terri Schindler-Schiavo's tragic situation and the corruption that certainly appears to be present. We are not going away," they promise.

Schiavogate---The Big Cover-up

By June Maxam and Ginger Berlin

� The Empire Journal

�People may die during the course of abuse investigations and the investigation may become moot�.

Apparently that�s what Florida�s Sixth Circuit Court George Greer is hoping. Maybe even the judges in the 2nd District Court of Appeals at Lakeland have the same mindset.

It appears that Greer has a vested interest in the death of Terri Schindler-Schiavo. Her death may make moot the warranted and overdue investigations of Greer�s own complicity in the case---alleged violations of guardianship laws and well as the alleged cover-up of criminal wrongdoing in the matter---an obstruction of justice---a prosecutable offense for which culpability will only increase with judicial homicide.

Saying that that death will render the alleged decade-long abuse of Terri Schiavo, aided and abetted by the court as moot, Greer denied the motion of Florida�s Department of Children and Families (DCF) to intervene in the case of Terri Schiavo, sentenced to die March 18 by Greer because she requires food and water to live.

The plethora of alleged improprieties in the Schiavo case gives immediate cause for the appointment of a special prosecutor into not only the alleged wrongdoing of Michael Schiavo but of George Greer. The longer that Florida authorities resist in removing Greer from the case and bench, the greater the miscarriage of justice

Citizen's arrest attempt of Schiavo, judge

Green Beret Bo Gritz intervened in Ruby Ridge to escort family to safety

Former Green Beret Commander Bo Gritz is trying to conduct a citizen's arrest of the Terri Schindler Schiavo's husband and the judge presiding in the case before the handicapped Florida woman is scheduled to have her feeding tube removed so she can be legally starved to death.

The 66-year-old retired Army Lt. Colonel with his wife, Judy, arrived in Florida from their home in Nevada yesterday with the intent of arresting anyone involved in removing the woman's feeding tube that keeps her alive.

He came bearing a notarized "citizen's arrest warrant" addressed to Florida Gov. Jeb Bush Attorney General Charlie Crist. He said his intent is to "papering" state and federal law enforcement offices with his warrant today � a day before Circuit Court Judge George Greer has ordered the denial of food and water to Terri Schiavo.

Gritz says the "arrest" is designed to allow officials additional options as the Florida governor and legislature maneuver to save the woman from starvation.


Gritz says he successfully used the arrest-tool against federal law enforcement in August 1992 when he intervened in the siege at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, and brought what was left of Randy Weaver's family down the hill without further bloodshed. Sammy, the 14-year-old Weaver boy, was killed along with his mother, Vicki, and U.S. Marshal William Degan. Randy Weaver and another man, Kevin Harris, were wounded by police gunfire.

Gritz secured the services of renowned defense lawyer Gerry Spence, and the U.S. Department of Justice paid the Weavers $3.2 million in an out-of-court settlement. Harris was awarded more than $300,000.

Citing his officer's oath of allegiance to "defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic," Gritz says while he doesn't know Terri Schiavo personally, she nevertheless represents an American in danger of citizen-rights abuse, and he feels an obligation to act while she remains alive.

Besides a "Terri-Bill" under consideration in the U.S. Congress, the Florida Legislature votes tomorrow on a modified measure to keep Terri's life-support in place. A previous Florida bill was ruled unconstitutional barring further intervention by Gov. Bush.

While threatened with arrest at Ruby Ridge, the decorated war hero instead walked away with FBI letters of appreciation.

Breaking News: DCF Declines To Take Action !

We have received information tonight from the Schindlers that the Department of Children & Families have decided that there is insufficient evidence of abuse to proceed inthe Terri Schiavo case.

The infromation was passed on to the Gibbs Law Firm and Attorney Felos. We are not sure how they arrived at this decision without an investigation.

The Schindlers are very disappointed at this time and ask everyone to contact Govenor Bush and ask him to please save Terri's life !

It is urgent that you contact Govenor Bush as soon as possible !

Heres How:
Gov Bush Email:jeb.bush@myflorida.com
Telephone: 850/488-4441
Fax: 850/487-0801

U.S. House OKs bill to delay Schiavo case

The House passed legislation late Wednesday intended to delay the removal of the feeding tube keeping alive a brain-damaged woman whose husband has been given permission by a state court to allow her to die.

Earlier in the day, a Florida appeals court refused to block the removal of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube. For years her husband has battled her parents over his efforts to allow her to die, which he contends she would prefer rather than live in a vegetative state.

The House bill, passed on a voice vote, would move such a case to federal court. Federal judges have twice turned down efforts by the parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, to move the case out of Florida courts, citing a lack of jurisdiction.

Senate Republicans are introducing a separate bill to give Schiavo and her family standing in federal court, and they hope it can be debated on Thursday, a GOP aide said.

Under the House legislation, a federal judge would decide whether withholding or withdrawing food, fluids or medical treatment from an incapacitated person violates the Constitution or U.S. law. It would apply only to incapacitated people who had not left directives dealing with being kept alive artificially and for whom a state judge had authorized the withholding of food or medical treatment.

Schiavo, 41, suffered severe brain damage in 1990 when her heart stopped temporarily, and court-appointed doctors say she is in a persistent vegetative state. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, says she told him she would not want to be kept alive artificially. Her parents disagree that was her wish and say she could improve with proper treatment.

Florida Circuit Judge George Greer has granted Michael Schiavo permission to remove the feeding tube, a ruling a state appellate court upheld Wednesday. Without the feeding tube, which the state court allowed to be removed as early as Friday, Terri Schiavo would likely die in one to two weeks.

"What's going on in Florida regarding Terri Schiavo is nothing short of inhumane," said House Judiciary Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., who introduced the bill with Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Fla.

Some House members criticized the bill, which Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., called "a dangerously reckless way to deal with some serious issues."

"It does not deal just with feeding tubes. It would allow intervention in any decision affecting any kind of medical care. Read the bill," Nadler said.

The Florida appeals court said in Wednesday's ruling that the issues the Schindlers' raised were not new ones and had been dealt with previously by numerous courts.

"Not only has Mrs. Schiavo's case been given due process, but few, if any similar cases have ever been afforded this heightened level of process," Chief Judge Chris Altenbernd wrote.

The court also rejected the Department of Children & Families' request for a 60-day stay while that agency investigates allegations that Terri Schiavo has been abused.

The Schindler's planned to ask the Supreme Court to consider whether their daughter's religious freedom and due process rights have been violated. Federal courts have declined to become involved the case.

In Tallahassee, the House and Senate were considering competing proposals to prevent the removal of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube.

The bills would block the removal of feeding tubes from patients in a persistent vegetative state who didn't leave specific verbal or written instructions otherwise. But the Senate plan would only affect cases where families disagreed.

Judge Imposes Death Penalty for Peterson

A California judge Wednesday finalized the death sentence for Scott Peterson (search), telling the convicted double-murderer his actions were "callous and cruel."

Earlier, Judge Alfred A. Delucchi (search) denied a defense request for a new trial.

Wearing a black suit and waist shackles, Peterson entered the courtroom around 9 a.m. PST. His parents and the family of his wife Laci Peterson (search) were present for the hearing.

Laci Peterson's father said Judge Delucchi's decision gave him a sense of closure.

"Our family is going to make it. We are stronger because of this and Scott got what he deserved," Ron Grantski told the press after the hearing.

After thanking his family's supporters along with the prosecution and sheriff's office, Grantski added that he hoped the entire country would adopt a law named for his daughter and the grandchild he never knew.

"We are fortunate we have this law. It was a double murder that he killed our grandson and our daughter," Grantski said. The Unborn Victims of Violence Act (search), or Laci and Conner's law, makes harming a fetus during an assault on a pregnant woman a crime.

Laci Peterson, 28, was eight months pregnant when she was killed two years ago. Scott Peterson, 32, was convicted last November of killing Laci and her unborn son, Conner.

Emotions ran high in the courtroom as her family confronted her murderer.

"You made a conscious decision to kill them ... you threw them away like garbage," Sharon Rocha said.

"I miss her so much, having lunch with her, hearing her giggle," Rocha told Peterson. "I will never meet my grandson."

Brent Rocha said he suspected Scott Peterson of murder soon after his sister disappeared and bought a gun with the intention of killing him.

"You still go on as if nothing's happened," Rocha told his former brother-in-law. "You always had this arrogance about you."

The family members' testimony prompted a shouting match that led to Scott Peterson's father storming out of the courtroom.

Scott Peterson's mother, Jackie, interrupted, although her voice was inaudible.

"What a liar!" Scott Peterson's father, Lee, yelled from the audience before the judge admonished him. Lee Peterson left the courtroom, and his wife Jackie soon followed.

Scott Peterson, who sat relatively motionless throughout the hearing, declined an opportunity to address the court.

Many jurors cited Peterson's appearance of indifference and arrogance after they recommended the death penalty for him in December.

"Apart from shaking his head 'no,' I didn't see any reaction," said Mike Church, an alternate juror who was in the courtroom for Wednesday's hearing. "He sat as he did during the rest of the trial, looking stoic, unemotional and almost resentful."

Media Circus Not Over

The disappearance of the sunny, expectant mother on Christmas Eve more than two years ago touched off a media circus that exploded with each made-for-TV development.

Several books have already sprung from the case, the most famous authored by Scott's former mistress and key witness in his trial, Amber Frey. A cable network produced and aired a movie about Laci's murder before Scott had even been convicted.

And even the jury became a focal point during the trial. In June, as the prosecutors' case was not looking good, juror Justin Falconer (search) told the press he did not believe Peterson was guilty after he was ordered off the trial.

And verdict deliberations were twice interrupted in November when Delucchi dismissed two more jurors.

Sacramento's KCRA-TV has reported that several jurors were teaming up to write about their experience during the trial.

Wednesday's hearing does not spell the end for the Peterson case. In California, appeals are automatic for capital murder cases, and the jury drama may be helpful to the defense.

In July, jurors went on a trip to see Peterson's fishing boat. Prosecutors maintained that the boat could withstand capsizing if a body was thrown overboard.

"I personally think it's OK that the judge allowed the jury to get into that boat, but you never quite know how the court of appeals will view it," FOX News legal analyst Stan Goldman said.

"There's the complication that the judge wouldn't let the defense demonstrate its own version of how the boat might have tipped over, so it could end up being an argument somewhere in the Ninth Circuit court when this thing starts going through the federal system," he said.

In a motion for a new trial filed on Feb. 25, defense attorney Mark Geragos also alleged the prosecution withheld evidence and that dismissal of the two jurors during deliberations was inappropriate.

As for Peterson himself, some legal experts predicted he would become a target in San Quentin State Prison (search), where he is to sit on death row.

"His experience at San Quentin is going to be miserable," said criminal defense attorney Yale Galanter. "This is the type of guy who will need protective custody. I don't think Scott Peterson will do well there at all."

Blake Found Not Guilty of Murder

The jury in the Robert Blake (search) murder trial on Wednesday found the "Baretta" actor not guilty of the 2001 murder of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley (search).

The jury also acquitted Blake of one charge of trying to get someone to kill Bakley but deadlocked on a second solicitation charge. The jury voted 11-1 in favor of acquittal and the judge dismissed the count.

The 71-year-old star of the 1970s detective drama "Baretta" (search) dropped his head, trembled with emotion and sobbed heavily as the verdict was read. He hugged his lawyer and later almost fell while reaching for a water bottle.

Bakley's adult daughter sobbed quietly in the back of the courtroom.

Outside the courthouse, Blake was cheered by supporters and put out a cigarette he had been smoking before thanking his lawyers and private investigators.

"This small band of dedicated warriors saved my life," he said.

He also described the financial toll the case had taken on him.

"If you want to know how to go through $10 million in five years, ask me," he said. "I'm broke. I need a job."

At one point, Blake asked someone in the crowd for something to remove his electronic monitoring bracelet. He then bent down and cut off the ankle device.

The jury of seven men and five women delivered the verdicts on its ninth day of deliberations, following a trial with a cast of characters that included two Hollywood stuntmen who said Blake tried to get them to bump off his wife.

Blake had faced life in prison; prosecutors did not seek the death penalty.

Blake was charged with shooting Bakley, 44, in their car outside the actor's favorite Italian restaurant on May 4, 2001, before their marriage was even 6 months old.

The defense called it a weak case built largely on the testimony of the two stuntmen � both of whom were once heavy drug users.

"The prosecution built their case on the backs of those two men and neither one of them was worthy of belief," defense attorney M. Gerald Schwartzbach said outside court.

No eyewitnesses, blood or DNA evidence linked Blake to the crime. The murder weapon, found in a trash bin, could not be traced to Blake.

"They couldn't put the gun in his hand," jury foreman Thomas Nicholson told reporters, adding the case lacked evidence that could "connect all the links in the chain."

"There was nothing," Nicholson told reporters. "Supposition, more than evidence."

Sandi Gibbons, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office, said the prosecution had done its best with the case.

"We always said this case needed to be decided by a jury," she said. "The jury has weighed the evidence, and the decision has been made."

Eric Dubin, an attorney representing Bakley's family, said the verdict won't stop their wrongful death suit against Blake scheduled to begin on July 7.

"When we put him on the stand, we'll find he's guilty in the civil court," Dubin said.

Bakley's daughter Holly Gawron, 24, said she was shocked by the verdicts and looked forward to her family's wrongful death lawsuit against Blake. The trial in that case is set to begin July 7.

"I hope somehow that I will be able to find some justice, some form of punishment for him, because he's off celebrating his freedom for murdering my mother," she said. "It's very hard to deal with."

Prosecutors said Blake believed his wife trapped him into a loveless marriage by getting pregnant. They said Blake soon became smitten with the baby, Rosie, and desperately wanted to keep the child away from Bakley, whom he considered an unfit mother.

Bakley had been married several times, had a record for mail fraud and made a living scamming men out of money with nude pictures of herself and promises of sex.

"He was tricked by Bonny Lee and he hated her for it," prosecutor Shellie Samuels said in closing arguments. "He got taken by a small-time grifter."

Blake has been in front of the camera from childhood, back when he was sad-eyed little Mickey in the "Our Gang" movie shorts, and appeared in the 1967 movie "In Cold Blood," in which he portrayed a killer who dies on the gallows.

In "Baretta," Blake played a tough-talking, street-smart detective whose catchphrase was "Don't do the crime if you can't do the time."

Those acting successes seemed well in the past by the time a divorced and lonely Blake met Bakley at a jazz club five years ago. They had sex in his truck that night, and she was soon carrying Blake's child.

They were wed in 2000 in a no-frills ceremony at which the bride wore an electronic monitoring bracelet because she was still on probation for fraud.

Prosecutors said Blake killed his wife after failing to persuade a street thug-turned-minister and two stuntmen from his "Baretta" days to do the job. One of the stuntmen said Blake talked about having Bakley "snuffed" and mentioned locations for the killing, including the Grand Canyon.

Also, a former detective who worked for Blake as a private investigator testified that the actor proposed to kidnap Bakley, force her to have an abortion and, if that did not work, "whack her."

The defense portrayed the stuntmen as drug users prone to hallucinations and delusions.

Blake was acquitted of asking stuntmen Gary McLarty to kill Bakley.

McLarty's "testimony in my view was so disjointed and so irregular in what he was trying to say. It had no bearing in my judgment," jury foreman Nicholson said.

The judge dismissed a second charge that Blake asked Ronald "Duffy" Hambleton to kill his wife. Nicholson called Hambleton a "prolific liar."

Blake told authorities that he walked his wife to the car after dinner, then discovered he had left his gun back in the booth at Vitello's Restaurant. He went back to get it, then returned to the car and found his wife shot, he said. That gun was not the murder weapon.

Blake did not testify. But his lawyer showed the jury a videotape of a jailhouse interview with Barbara Walters in which he denied killing his wife.

"It's all about Rosie. It's always been about Rosie," Blake said. "The greatest gift in the world, and I'm going to try to mess it up by being selfish?"

Rosie, now 4, is being raised by Blake's adult daughter.

Wednesday, March 16, 2005

Santorum Vows to Save Terri Schiavo

A top GOP senator is vowing to save a disabled Florida woman from a court-ordered starvation-execution this week, with the new legislation reportedly winning the backing of key leaders in the U.S. Senate.

Commenting on plans to remove Terri Schiavo's feeding tube this Friday, Sen. Rick Santorum told The Hill newspaper on Wednesday, "That's not going to happen on my watch." Contrary to media claims that Schiavo is comatose or in "a persistent vegetative state," Santorum said, the 41-year-old disabled woman is "close to equivalent of someone with the disease cerebral palsy."

Senate Democrats are expected to resist the proposed legislation, which would give federal courts jurisdiction over Schiavo's case, though experts predict that, unless someone intervenes, her death will be gruesome.

After her feeding tube is removed, she will experience significant pain and psychological distress during the two weeks it is expected to take her to die.

Dehydration will cause Schiavo's skin, tongue and lips to crack. She will likely suffer chronic nosebleeds as mucous membranes dry out, followed by heaving and vomiting as the stomach lining dries out.

Her mouth is expected to develop painful ulcers. As Schiavo's brain is deprived of fluid, she is expected to suffer grand mal seizures.

Because the 41-year-old woman is in good health with a normal body weight of 138 pounds, she could hang on longer than a patient who is already terminally ill.

In a bid to head off the horrific scenario, Florida's Legislature is also swinging into action.

A House bill proposed this week would block doctors from denying food or water to someone in a persistent vegetative state, but would make exceptions for patients who left specific instructions, reports The Associated Press.


The Senate version would block the denial of food and water only in cases where family members disagreed on whether to maintain feeding. Then the patient would be kept alive unless he or she had expressed different wishes in writing.

Both bills were expected to be voted on by Thursday.

Kate Adamson Speaks from Experience for Terri Schiavo

Kate Adamson is the mother of two who suffered a double brain stem stroke and was in a coma for 70 days. She was completely unresponsive to stimuli and was diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state. Doctors finally pulled her feeding tube and, for eight days, she lay dying. Instead of being unconscious as the doctors believed she was aware of everything.


During an interview on the O'Reilly Factor in 2003 she recounted the dehydration experience:

O'REILLY: When they took the feeding tube out, what went through your mind?

ADAMSON: When the feeding tube was turned off for eight days, I thought I was going insane. I was screaming out in my mind, "Don't you know I need to eat?" And even up until that point, I had been having a bagful of Ensure as my nourishment that was going through the feeding tube. At that point, it sounded pretty good. I just wanted something. The fact that I had nothing, the hunger pains overrode every thought I had.

Bob & Mary Schindler have invited Kate Adamson to address the Florida State House Committee on the Judiciary and share her remarkable story. Adamson, author of "Kate's Journey" and a renowned disability rights activist, hopes her story will change the way Terri is being perceived by those who hold her life in their hands.

Due to a catastrophic brain stem stroke, Kate was dependent on a feeding tube for all her nourishment and had the tube turned off for over a week. She, unlike most others, can understand what Terri is going through. Doctors had given up hope that Kate would ever recover, but she is now fully functional except for some paralysis on the left side of her body.

"I have a unique understanding of what Terri is feeling. I could feel everything that the doctors did to me, and I could do nothing. I was at the complete mercy of others, and they couldn't hear me. I have been given the opportunity to speak on behalf of one that has been robbed of her voice. We are praying that God will move on the hearts of Governor Bush and the Florida Legislature to stand up and protect the right of Terri not to be starved to death."

DCF Appeals Schiavo Decision, Asks DCA for Stay

By The Empire Journal

Eyes across the nation are focused on the 2nd District Court of Appeals in Florida and how they will rule in the Terri Schindler-Schiavo case, the severely brain damaged woman who is scheduled to be executed by starvation with the removal of her nutrition and hydration at 1 p.m. Friday.

On Monday, Florida�s Department of Children and Families filed an appeal of last week�s decision of Sixth Circuit Court Judge George W. Greer who had denied the agency�s motion for intervention in the case in order to conduct a mandated investigation of some 30 allegations of abuse, neglect and exploitation in the Schiavo case.

DCF has asked the appellate court to issue a stay in the death order until the matter can be heard and investigation completed.

The DCA is also considering several other motions filed by Terri�s parents, the Schindlers, of other Greer rulings in the case and has promised an expedited ruling by 5 p.m. Thursday. The Schindlers are also seeking a stay in the death order until all appeals can be heard.

The agency has indicated that estranged husband and guardian Michael Schiavo who seeks to end his wife�s life is the target of their investigation. Greer has ordered him to remove his wife�s feeding tube because he says she is in a persistent vegetative state and would not want to be kept alive by assisted feeding.

DCF had sought a 60-day stay of Greer�s death order in order to allow them to complete their investigation, saying that the termination of Terri�s life would hamper the investigation of the allegations, �many of which have previously gone on uninvestigated�, according to DCF.

But despite the agency�s statutory mandate to investigate, last week Greer denied their motion to intervene and their request for a stay, saying that �intervention is allowed only if the interests of justice so required and the the intervenor stands to lose or gain invaluable rights dependent on the outcome of the case�,


Apparently Greer doesn�t consider that executing an allegedly abused woman whose only �crime� is that she receives her food and water in an alternative manner than other people, constitutes granting a stay �in the interest of justice� in order to seek the truth in the matter.

The termination of life would prevent an investigation into her surroundings and circumstances by creating a mootness under the Adult Protective Statute, thus divesting DCF of its jurisdiction, Adult Protective Services investigator Michael Will told the court.

Will and chief regional legal counsel for DCF Kelly McKibben, DCF cited a 1972 decision by the 2nd District Court of Appeals in Lakeland which held that a trial judge was in error in his failure to allow (an agency) to participate in what was designated to their mandatory function.

DCF told Greer that �due to the investigation and the potential need for examination of the alleged victim, surroundings and circumstances as required by law, the DCF is interested, directly and immediately in that part of the guardianship proceeding which calls for the removal of life support because such action would deny DCF�s ability to meet its statutory duty�.

�Allegations in abuse reports go to the heart of whether abuse, neglect of exploitation has been perpetrated by the guardian such that any relief afforded by this court to this guardian prior to the conclusion of such investigation would be tragically misplaced�, the DCF told the court.

In his denial and refusal to allow DCF�s intervention in the case, Greer said that �people may die during the course of abuse. Most investigations and the investigation may become moot� which would seem to indicate that Greer advocates that in cases of murder caused by domestic abuse that the murder would preclude any investigation and prosecution of the person responsible.

Greer had ruled that the DCF intervention in a guardianship proceeding was not appropriate. He said that DCF�s statutorily mandated duty to investigation abuse reports and of providing services did not require intervention in a guardianship proceeding.

He said that in cases of emergency, the DCF was empowered to provide emergency services and then petition the court for authority within 24 hours. �No where is authority given to DCF to become a party to any guardianship as part of its duty�, Greer said.

Greer noted that the DCF�s position before the court is that Terri Schiavo musts be kept alive until it finishes its investigation so that it may furnish her with services if necessary. �What is particularly unsettling is that when asked whether DCF believed that part of its mandated duty was to review orders of this court, the answer from DCF counsel was yes�.

Greer apparently feels that he is omnipotent and autonomous and that no order issued by him should be subject to scrutiny or overturning.

In the past, while Attorney General Charlie Crist has denied that any allegations of abuse had been filed in the Schiavo case, Greer�s written decision did acknowledge that was untrue and that prior abuse reports had been received.

Although a DCF investigation was completed previously, Greer had waived the file in court saying �Oh, yeah, we received that� and indicated that it was closed after he sided with DCF counsel Frank Nagatani and refused to allow a DCF investigator to testify at a hearing in regard to alleged abuse. Natagani was a contributor to Greer�s reelection campaign.

Greer has consistently refused to allow evidence of alleged abuse into the court record saying that while it was interesting, it had no bearing on whether or not Teri Schiavo would want to be kept alive by food and water.

Although in the past, Schiavo and his attorney, George Felos had refused to acknowledge that there had been prior abuse allegations, with the entry of DCF into the case, Felos claimed that there had been 89 prior complaints which had been investigated and determined unfounded. Felos claims that he�d like to release those complaints but couldn�t because of confidentially concerns.

A Florida newspaper has now filed a petition with Greer seeking an order that would allow Schiavo and Felos to release the previous reports of abuse and the results of previous DCF investigations.

House, Senate Clash Over Terri Schiavo

A Senate committee significantly narrowed a proposal Tuesday intended to keep Terri Schiavo (search) alive and a key lawmaker said the change could stymie efforts to intervene before the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube is removed.

Rep. John Stargel (search), R-Lakeland, said it was unlikely the House would agree to the Senate's changes, which he called "unconstitutional."

It's the first public road block as lawmakers rushed to approve proposals that would prevent the removal of the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube on Friday.

Both bills are expected to go to their full chambers when the bodies meet again on Thursday. Both chambers are given over to committee hearings again Wednesday.

Schiavo, 41, has been at the center of a long and bitter court battle between her parents and her husband, who wants to remove her feeding tube so she can die.

A House (search) panel approved a plan to require that patients in a persistent vegetative state receive nutrition and hydration unless they had a living will or left specific oral instructions refusing the measures.

But a Senate panel would only block the denial of food and water in cases where family members disagreed on whether to keep it in place. Then the patient would be kept alive unless he or she had expressed different wishes in writing.

"Anything's possible, but I don't think that's the direction we're heading in, Stargel said. "I believe it's contrary to the case law."

Stargel's opposition to the Senate's language would significantly influence House Speaker Allan Bense's position on the bill, Bense's spokesman said.

"He's said all along that he doesn't want to sign anything that's unconstitutional just to get the bill passed," Towson Fraser said.

Rep. Dudley Goodlette, R-Naples, who is also closely involved in the negotiations between House and Senate, confirmed that his House colleagues think the Senate bill "has some constitutional problems." But, Goodlette said, the two sides were still working trying to reach a compromise.

Gov. Jeb Bush said he hoped Circuit Judge George W. Greer, who cleared the way for the feeding tube to be removed, would give legislators more time to pass the bill, if it was needed.

"I would hope the judge would show some deference to the Legislature as well," he said.

Bush hasn't commented on whether he would sign either bill, but supported the efforts of lawmakers.

"As a society, we need to protect innocent life and we should err on the side of caution," Bush said.

Some lawmakers questioned whether the retroactivity in both bills would be upheld by the courts, since people currently in a vegetative state would have expressed their wishes before the law was changed.

Lawmakers say the bill, if deemed constitutional, would apply to Schiavo, who court-appointed doctors say is in a persistent vegetative state.

She did not leave any written instructions, but her husband, Michael Schiavo, contends she told him that she would not want to be kept alive artificially. Bob and Mary Schindler dispute that and say their daughter could recover with proper treatment.

In a letter to the Florida Senate, Michael Schiavo's attorney George Felos said Monday that lawmakers had not been told the facts of the case and said the case has "been the subject of an unprecedented campaign of misinformation."

Two trials have determined that Terri Schiavo has no hope of ever regaining consciousness and multiple appellate courts have agreed, Felos wrote.

He said Terri Schiavo expressed her end-of-life wishes the way most people do � verbally and without leaving written instructions.

"The proposed legislation should be exposed for what it is, an attempt by opponents of medical freedom of choice to prevent Floridians from declining or ending artificial feeding," Felos wrote. "The fate of more than Mrs. Schiavo hangs in the balance."

Felos also wrote the United States Senate expressing similar concerns about federal legislation which would allow federal courts to become involved in disputes similar to the one between Michael Schiavo and his in-laws.

Howard Simon, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, said he believes the bills are unconstitutional.

"The Legislature can dress this up as much as they want, but ... this is an attempt to undermine the role of the courts," he said.

House Democrats said their Republican colleagues were rushing through the process for the benefit of one woman without making prudent modifications.

"We need to be able to talk long and hard about this," said Shelley Vana, D-West Palm Beach. "I know that we're trying to meet a deadline, but we have to pass good legislation."

Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach, argued that the hope of saving a single life made the rush necessary.

"Life is on the line. Life hangs in the balance right now," he said.

Lawmakers ready to save Schiavo

Reach deal setting up vote in Florida Legislature

Key members of the Florida House and Senate reached a deal yesterday on a bill to prevent Terri Schiavo from being allowed to starve to death under a court order requested by her estranged husband.

For the second time in less than two years, the state lawmakers are prepared to intervene in the case of the brain-damaged woman, who requires a feeding tube to keep her alive.


The proposed legislation would prevent caretakers of a person in a "persistent vegetative state" from withholding food and water in the absence of a written directive.

In 2003, "Terri's Law" enabled Gov. Jeb Bush to intervene the second time Terri Schiavo's feeding tube was removed. The law later was ruled unconstitutional, however, by the Florida Supreme Court, which said it violated the legal separation between the three branches of government.

Michael Schiavo won a court order in 2000 to have his wife's feeding tube removed, claiming she was in a "persistent vegetative state" and had declared orally she wouldn't want to live in such a condition.

Parents Robert and Mary Schindler, however, insist their daughter, while severely handicapped, is responsive and demonstrates a strong will to live. They have filed a flurry of motions to prevent removal of the feeding tube, scheduled for Friday, after 1 p.m.

The Florida bill is expected to come up for a vote Friday.

Terri Schiavo is not hooked up to any machines, but she requires the small feeding tube for nourishment and hydration. She collapsed under disputed circumstances Feb. 25, 1990, suffering severe brain damage when her heart stopped momentarily. Michael Schiavo attributes the collapse to an eating disorder, but the Schindlers strongly suspect he tried to strangle her.

The Schindlers have pleaded with Michael Schiavo to divorce their daughter, pointing out he has been living with another woman for 10 years, with whom he has two children.

Lawmakers said legal counsel for Gov. Jeb Bush helped shaped the new legislation, and they expect the governor to sign it, the Florida Sun-Sentinel reported.

Mathew D. Staver, president and general counsel of Florida-based Liberty Counsel, a public-interest law firm, said he was pleased the legislature is acting with deliberate speed.

"Terri Schiavo is only a few days away from being starved and dehydrated," he said. "Death by dehydration and starvation is slow, painful, and inhumane. No parent should be forced to stand by helplessly and watch their child die of starvation."

The bill would allow a guardian, in the absence of a written directive, to deny food and water if there was "clear and convincing evidence" the incapacitated person declared his or her wishes orally.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. David Simmons, R-Orlando, emphasized "clear and convincing" is a tough standard.

He told the Sun-Sentinel a casual conversation "sitting around the dinner table, that's not going to rise to the level that will permit the denial of sustenance and hydration."

Michael Schiavo says Terri made her wishes known in casual conversations.

Sen. Dan Webster, R-Winter Garden, the bill's sponsor in the Senate, said the new legislation avoids the constitutional problems found in "Terri's Law" -- violation of separation of powers and that it was retroactive and narrowly applied to Schiavo.

But Michael Schiavo's attorney, well-known "right-to-die" lawyer George Felos, predicted the Supreme Court will strike down this law as well.

"This is purely a knee-jerk response to the growing political clout of the far right, and it's tragic, to say the least, that legislators don't have any concern about the constitutionality of the acts they pass," he told the Florida paper.

Meanwhile, in the U.S. Congress, two lawmakers from Florida are pressing for federal legislation that would save Terri Schiavo's life.

Sen. Mel Martinez and Rep. David Weldon say the Incapacitated Person's Legal Protection Act will give Schiavo, and others in similar situations, the same constitutional protection of due process as death-row inmates.

Current law leaves the rights of disabled persons at the mercy of courts instead of the Constitution, the lawmakers argue.

The new measure would not apply to cases in which an advance medical directive is in effect.

Weldon's bill, which has 110 colleagues signed on in support, will have a hearing tomorrow at the House Judiciary Committee.

Martinez is hoping for a Senate vote on similar legislation this week.

U.S. Report Lists Possibilities for Terrorist Attacks and Likely Toll

The Department of Homeland Security, trying to focus antiterrorism spending better nationwide, has identified a dozen possible strikes it views as most plausible or devastating, including detonation of a nuclear device in a major city, release of sarin nerve agent in office buildings and a truck bombing of a sports arena.

The document, known simply as the National Planning Scenarios, reads more like a doomsday plan, offering estimates of the probable deaths and economic damage caused by each type of attack.

They include blowing up a chlorine tank, killing 17,500 people and injuring more than 100,000; spreading pneumonic plague in the bathrooms of an airport, sports arena and train station, killing 2,500 and sickening 8,000 worldwide; and infecting cattle with foot-and-mouth disease at several sites, costing hundreds of millions of dollars in losses. Specific locations are not named because the events could unfold in many major metropolitan or rural areas, the document says.

The agency's objective is not to scare the public, officials said, and they have no credible intelligence that such attacks are planned. The department did not intend to release the document publicly, but a draft of it was inadvertently posted on a Hawaii state government Web site.

By identifying possible attacks and specifying what government agencies should do to prevent, respond to and recover from them, Homeland Security is trying for the first time to define what "prepared" means, officials said.

That will help decide how billions of federal dollars are distributed in the future. Cities like New York that have targets with economic and symbolic value, or places with hazardous facilities like chemical plants could get a bigger share of agency money than before, while less vulnerable communities could receive less.

"We live in a world of finite resources, whether they be personnel or funding," said Matt A. Mayer, acting executive director of the Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness at the Homeland Security Department, which is in charge of the effort.

President Bush requested the list of priorities 15 months ago to address a widespread criticism of Homeland Security from members of Congress and antiterrorism experts that it was wasting money by spreading it out instead of focusing on areas or targets at greatest risk. Critics also have faulted the agency for not having a detailed plan on how to eliminate or reduce vulnerabilities.

Michael Chertoff, the new secretary of homeland security, has made it clear that this risk-based planning will be a central theme of his tenure, saying that the nation must do a better job of identifying the greatest threats and then move aggressively to deal with them.

"There's risk everywhere; risk is a part of life," Mr. Chertoff said in testimony before the Senate last week. "I think one thing I've tried to be clear in saying is we will not eliminate every risk."

The goal of the document's planners was not to identify every type of possible terrorist attack. It does not include an airplane hijacking, for example, because "there are well developed and tested response plans" for such an incident. Planners included the threats they considered the most plausible or devastating, and that represented a range of the calamities that communities might need to prepare for, said Marc Short, a department spokesman. "Each scenario generally reflects suspected terrorist capabilities and known tradecraft," the document says.

To ensure that emergency planning is adequate for most possible hazards, three catastrophic natural events are included: an influenza pandemic, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake in a major city and a slow-moving Category 5 hurricane hitting a major East Coast city.

The strike possibilities were used to create a comprehensive list of the capabilities and actions necessary to prevent attacks or handle incidents once they happen, like searching for the injured, treating the surge of victims at hospitals, distributing mass quantities of medicine and collecting the dead.

Once the White House approves the plan, which could happen within the next month, state and local governments will be asked to identify gaps in fulfilling the demands placed upon them by the possible strikes, officials said.

No terrorist groups are identified in the documents. Instead, those responsible for the various hypothetical attacks are called Universal Adversary.

The most devastating of the possible attacks - as measured by loss of life and economic impact - would be a nuclear bomb, the explosion of a liquid chlorine tank and an aerosol anthrax attack.

The anthrax attack involves terrorists filling a truck with an aerosolized version of anthrax and driving through five cities over two weeks spraying it into the air. Public health officials, the report predicts, would probably not know of the initial attack until a day or two after it started. By the time it was over, an estimated 350,000 people would be exposed, and about 13,200 would die, the report predicts.

The emphasis on casualty predictions is a critical part of the process, because Homeland Security officials want to establish what kinds of demands these incidents would place upon the public health and emergency response system.

"The public will want to know very quickly if it is safe to remain in the affected city and surrounding regions," the anthrax attack summary says. "Many persons will flee regardless of the public health guidance that is provided."

Even in some cases where the expected casualties are relatively small, the document lays out extraordinary economic consequences, as with a radiological dispersal device, known as a "dirty bomb." The planning document predicts 540 initial deaths, but within 20 minutes, a radioactive plume would spread across 36 blocks, contaminating businesses, schools, shopping areas and homes, as well as transit systems and a sewage treatment plant.

The authors of the reports have tried to make each possible attack as realistic as possible, providing details on how terrorists would obtain deadly chemicals, for example, and what equipment they would be likely to use to distribute it. But the document makes clear that "the Federal Bureau of Investigation is unaware of any credible intelligence that indicates that such an attack is being planned."

Poll: Two-Thirds Back Spouse in Right to Die Cases

- In family disputes over life support, a broad majority of Americans think final say should go to a patient's spouse rather than his or her parents -- placing the public firmly on the side of Terri Schiavo's husband and the Florida courts that have ruled in his favor.

Schiavo has been in a persistent vegetative state after suffering extensive brain damage brought on by heart failure in 1990, when she was 26. She left no living will, and her parents and husband have been locked in a dispute on whether to continue life support. Her feeding tube is to be removed Friday, though legislators may intervene.

In a new ABC News/Washington Post poll, 65 percent of Americans say the spouse rather than the parents should have final say in such disputes; 25 percent say it should be the parents.

Schiavo's husband, Michael, wants to discontinue life support, saying that would be her wish. Her parents want life support continued. Here, too, the husband's position is in line with what most Americans would want for themselves: Eighty-seven percent say that if they were in this condition, they would want life support terminated.

Transcript: Michael Schiavo on 'Nightline'

Husband at the Heart of the 'Right to Die' Case Speaks to Chris Bury

Mar. 15, 2005 - Michael Schiavo won a series of lengthy court battles for the right to take his severely disabled wife, Terri, off life support, but now faces a new challenge from Florida lawmakers who are seeking to pass a bill that would stop him from doing so.

Terri Schiavo collapsed in 1990 and suffered severe brain damage. She has been kept alive by a feeding tube ever since and has been unable to speak or care for herself. Her parents have insisted she is not in a persistent vegetative state, as doctors appointed by the court have concluded. They also believe she would not have wanted to be allowed to die.

While Michael Schiavo has only rarely spoken to the press, he gave an interview to ABC News' Chris Bury as the bill moves through the state legislature and the day for removing his wife's feeding tube approaches.

Tuesday, March 15, 2005

N.Y. Times: Iraq Had WMD 'Stockpiles' in 2003

In a stunning about-face, the New York Times reported Sunday that when the U.S. attacked Iraq in March 2003, Saddam Hussein possessed "stockpiles of monitored chemicals and materials," as well as sophisticated equipment to manufacture nuclear and biological weapons, which was removed to "a neighboring state" before the U.S. could secure the weapons sites.

The U.N.'s Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission [UNMOVIC] "has filed regular reports to the Security Council since last May," the paper said, "about the dismantlement of important weapons installations and the export of dangerous materials to foreign states." "Officials of the commission and the [International] Atomic Energy Agency have repeatedly called on the Iraqi government to report on what it knows of the fate of the thousands of pieces of monitored equipment and stockpiles of monitored chemicals and materials."

Last fall, IAEA director Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei confirmed that "nuclear-related materials" had gone missing from monitored sites, calling on Iraqi officials to start the process of accounting for the missing stockpiles still ostensibly under the agency's supervision.

Quoting Sami al-Araji, Iraq's deputy minister of industry since the 1980s, the Times said:

"It appeared that a highly organized operation had pinpointed specific plants in search of valuable equipment, some of which could be used for both military and civilian applications, and carted the machinery away."

Calling the operation "sophisticated," Dr. Araji said the removal effort featured "cranes and the lorries, and they depleted the whole sites," adding, "They knew what they were doing."

The top Iraqi defense official said equipment capable of making parts for missiles as well as chemical, biological and nuclear arms was missing from 8 or 10 sites that were the heart of Iraq's WMD program.

Dr. Araji said that if the equipment had left the country, its most likely destination was a neighboring state.

The United Nations, worried that the nuclear material and equipment could be used in clandestine bomb production, has been hunting for it throughout the Middle East, largely unsuccessfully, the Times said.

Study Shows U.S. Election Coverage Harder on Bush

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. media coverage of last year's election was three times more likely to be negative toward President Bush than Democratic challenger John Kerry, according to a study released Monday.

The annual report by a press watchdog that is affiliated with Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism said that 36 percent of stories about Bush were negative compared to 12 percent about Kerry, a Massachusetts senator.


Only 20 percent were positive toward Bush compared to 30 percent of stories about Kerry that were positive, according to the report by the Project for Excellence in Journalism.


The study looked at 16 newspapers of varying size across the country, four nightly newscasts, three network morning news shows, nine cable programs and nine Web sites through the course of 2004.


Examining the public perception that coverage of the war in Iraq (news - web sites) was decidedly negative, it found evidence did not support that conclusion. The majority of stories had no decided tone, 25 percent were negative and 20 percent were positive, it said.


The three network nightly newscasts and public broadcaster PBS tended to be more negative than positive, while Fox News was twice as likely to be positive as negative.


Looking at public perceptions of the media, the report showed that more people thought the media was unfair to both Kerry and Bush than to the candidates four years earlier, but fewer people thought news organizations had too much influence on the outcome of the election.


"It may be that the expectations of the press have sunk enough that they will not sink much further. People are not dismayed by disappointments in the press. They expect them," the authors of the report said.


The study noted a huge rise in audiences for Internet news, particularly for bloggers whose readers jumped by 58 percent in six months to 32 million people.


Despite the growing importance of the Web, the report said investment was not keeping pace and some 62 percent of Internet professionals reported cutbacks in the newsroom in the last three years, even more than the 37 percent of print, radio and TV journalists who cited cutbacks in their newsrooms.


"For all that the number of outlets has grown, the number of people engaged in collecting original information has not," the report said, noting that much of the investment was directed at repackaging and presenting information rather than gathering news.

Signs of Anthrax Found at Pentagon

Sensors at two military mail facilities in the Washington area detected signs of anthrax on two pieces of mail Monday, but Pentagon officials said the mail had already been irradiated, rendering any anthrax inert.

Officials weren't sure if this was an attack. Additional tests and other sensors at the two facilities, one of them at the Pentagon and the other nearby, found no presence of the bacteria, which can be used as a biological weapon. There were no initial reports of illness.
The Pentagon's mail delivery site, which is separate from the main Pentagon building, was evacuated and shut down Monday after sensors triggered an alarm around 10:30 a.m. EST, spokesman Glenn Flood said. It was expected to remain closed until at least Tuesday while the investigation continued.

It was not clear when sensors at the second Defense Department mailroom were triggered Monday, and Pentagon officials only said a nearby satellite mail facility was closed. But firefighters in nearby Bailey's Crossroads, Va., reported that a military mailroom had been shut down after a hazardous material was detected, and no one was allowed to leave that building.

Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Cmdr. Jane Campbell said mail at both facilities were irradiated before arriving at either one. The radiation treatment would kill any anthrax bacteria, but sensors would still be able to detect it.

She had no information about the origin of the two pieces of mail.

About 175 people work at the Pentagon's mail facility, and another 100 may have been in contact with deliveries for the Pentagon, officials said.

Medical personnel took cultures from anyone who may have had contact with those deliveries, and those people were also offered a three-day course of antibiotics and told to watch for the signs of anthrax exposure: fever, sweats and chills.

Follow-up tests were being conducted at the U.S. Army Research Institute for Infectious Diseases at Fort Dietrich, Md., officials said. They would take two to three days to complete.

General operations at the Pentagon appeared unaffected.

Anthrax can be spread through the air or by skin contact. Officials noted that sometimes anthrax sensors can give false-positive results.

Several cases involving letters laced with killer substances remain unsolved.

In October 2001, someone sent anthrax in letters through the mail to media and government offices in Washington, Florida and elsewhere, raising fears of bioterrorism. Five people were killed and 17 more sickened.

In October 2003, two letters containing the poison ricin, sent to the Transportation Department and White House, were intercepted before they reached their destinations. The letters objected to new rules for long-haul truckers.

A small amount of ricin was discovered Feb. 2, 2004, on a mail-opening machine in the office suite of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn. The discovery led to a shutdown of three Senate office buildings for several days, and about two dozen staffers and Capitol police officers underwent decontamination.

Monday, March 14, 2005

Moronic ACLU Movie Smearing Rumsfeld

Watch this video from the ACLU that smears Rumsfeld and US Troops ! It should infuriate us all.

Zarqawi Planning U.S. Hit?

Intelligence officials say operatives may infiltrate via Central America to
strike at soft targets on American soil


Two weeks after intelligence officials confirmed that Osama bin Laden had
sent a message to Jordanian-born terrorist Abu Mousab al-Zarqawi, urging him
to plan attacks on U.S. soil, details are emerging from one of al-Zarqawi's
lieutenants about what the man behind many of the terrorist attacks in Iraq
could have in mind. Intelligence officials tell TIME that interrogation of a
member of al-Zarqawi's organization, who was taken into U.S. custody last
year and has been described as a top aide, indicates that al-Zarqawi has
given ample consideration to assaults on the American homeland. According to
a restricted bulletin that circulated among U.S. security agencies last
week, the interrogated aide said al-Zarqawi has talked about hitting "soft
targets" in the U.S., which could include "movie theaters, restaurants and
schools."

The bulletin also notes the Iraq-based master terrorist's apparent belief
that "if an individual has enough money, he can bribe his way into the
U.S.," specifically by obtaining a "visa to Honduras" and then traveling
across Mexico and the southern U.S. border.

Al-Zarqawi's aide also revealed that his boss, after pondering the absence
of attacks in the U.S. in recent years, concluded that a lack of "willing
martyrs" was to blame. Al-Zarqawi believes, according to his lieutenant,
that "if an individual is willing to die, there was nothing that could be
done to stop him," even in the U.S. There is no evidence, say intelligence
agencies, that al-Zarqawi's agents have infiltrated the U.S. But authorities
remain vigilant.

Security sources tell TIME that just last week the FBI sent out two
nationwide bulletins warning of a nonspecific threat to railroads in Detroit
and Los Angeles. On her visit to Mexico last week, Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice issued her own reminder of the border's vulnerability.
"There's no secret," Rice told reporters, "that al-Qaeda will try to get
into this country ... by any means they possibly can."