Michael Schiavo’s Rejection of $1 Million Offer “Not Surprising”, Schindlers say
The husband of Terri Schiavo, a severely disabled women at the center of one of the nation’s longest running right-to-life case, rejected a San Diego businessman’s offer to pay him $1 million to drop efforts to remove her feeding tube
The husband of Terri Schiavo, a severely disabled women at the center of one of the nation’s longest running right-to-life case, rejected a San Diego businessman’s offer to pay him $1 million to drop efforts to remove her feeding tube, on Friday, March 11, 2005.
In his offer, Robert Herring, founder of the San Diego-based cable network WealthTV, said he would pay Terri’s husband Michael Schiavo $1 million if he transfers the legal right to decide his wife's medical treatment to Terri’s parents, Robert and Mary Schindler.
“I believe very strongly that there are medical advances happening around the globe that very shortly could have a positive impact on Terri's condition,'' said Herring, in a statement released Thursday. "I have seen miraculous recoveries occur through the use of stem cells in patients suffering a variety of conditions.''
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Herring explained that he “became interested in the Terri Schiavo story some two years ago, and have followed the ups and downs in the tragic situation closely.”
Schiavo’s story extends back to 1990, when, due to unconfirmed reasons, Terri’s heart stopped beating and the oxygen flow to her brain got cut off for several minutes. Since suffering the brain injury, Terri has relied on a feeding tube to keep her alive.
About five years later Michael, Terri’s legal guardian, began efforts to take Terri off the feeding tubes, claiming she never wanted to be kept alive artificially; he also began living with his girlfriend, with whom he has now fathered two children with.
The Schindlers have since fought against Michael’s efforts to remove Terri’s tube, pointing out that their daughter never left an advanced written directive to be starved to death, and that she is alert, aware and should be allowed to live.
In the latest in a series of court decisions that extended through nearly seven years, a Florida judge ordered Terri’s tube be removed on March 18th.
Herring’s offer, which is on the table until Monday, came just one week before the scheduled removal of Terri’s tube.
Herring explained in his statement that he believes “there was hope” for Terri, but “if something is not done” that “hope for her would be lost.”
“I therefore have made an offer to Terri's husband in the amount of $1,000,000 to relinquish his custodial rights to Terri's parents in an effort to keep the hope for Terri alive,” Herring said.
Despite Mr. Herring’s assurance that he is a “neutral party” that is merely “looking to bring hope to Terri’s family,” Michael’s lawyer, George Felos, called the proposition “offensive.”
"Michael has said over and over again that this case is not about money for him,'' said Felos. "It's about carrying out his wife's wishes. There is no amount of money anyone can offer that will cause him to turn his back on his wife.''
Meanwhile, the Schindlers said they were moved by Mr. Herring’s offer, but were “not at all surprised” that Felos would reject the offer.
“It was with tremendous surprise that we learned yesterday of the offer to save the life of our daughter, Terri Schiavo, by Mr. Robert Herring,” the Schindlers said in a statement released Friday. “We are not at all surprised that Mr. Schiavo's lawyer, George Felos, will not allow him to entertain such an offer. It seems to us that the case law has become far more important to Mr. Felos than making any attempt to mediate the matter outside of the courts.”
The Schindlers also hinted that their son-in-law’s refusal to move on with his own life – with his new family – may have something to do with a desire to keep Terri silent.
“It also seems clear to our family that Mr. Schiavo has neither the inclination to discuss the matter with our family – as we have proposed previously – nor the desire to move on with his own life with his new family,” the Schindlers wrote. “After he has denied Terri therapy for so many years and denied our family any opportunity to help her, we can only come to the conclusion that he is not comfortable with the prospects of her regaining her abilities to speak and communicate to us the reasons for her condition.”
Ultimately, the Schindlers said they are thankful for the “good people” who are fighting for Terri’s cause, despite Michael’s refusal to comply.
“Written words can simply not express the gratitude our family now feels for Mr. Herring and his most generous offer to save the life of our dear daughter and sister, Terri Schiavo,” they said. “We thank Mr. Herring sincerely and we regret that the spirit of his charitable proposal has been dismissed out of hand by Mr. Felos and Mr. Schiavo.”
