St. Petersburg Timesreports:
As the day approached in which Terri Schiavo’s feeding tube was to
be removed, Gov. Jeb Bush claimed there were new and compelling
allegations of abuse or neglect that the state Department of
Children and Families had to investigate.
That effort led to a dramatic showdown between the governor and the
Pinellas-Pasco circuit judge who ordered Schiavo’s feeding tube
removed on March 18. Bush and DCF continued to seek its
reinsertion, claiming the 30 or so new complaints had to be probed.
But documents released by DCF Friday reveal few fresh allegations
that Schiavo was abused or neglected. Investigators wrote that
there were “no indicators” of abuse in any of the cases.
“The preponderance of the evidence shows that Michael Schiavo
followed doctors’ orders (regarding) Ms. Schiavo’s diagnosis of
being in a persistent vegetative state and that he provided her
with appropriate care,” one investigator wrote.DCF released nearly 70 pages of documents Friday in the Schiavo
case after the St. Petersburg Times sought their release in court.
Perhaps the only allegation in the batch not heard before: A March
7 complaint that accused a nursing assistant at Schiavo’s Pinellas
Park hospice of using an “air freshener substance” in her bath
water in July, which caused a rash. DCF investigators learned the
substance was an aromatherapy oil that the assistant placed in a
spray bottle, not in Schiavo’s bath.Another complaint, made on March 8, said Schiavo was moaning
because she was in pain from recent dental work. But other
complaints allege that Schiavo received no dental work for years.
Some people called to complain that the blinds in Schiavo’s room
weren’t open wide enough.Others just repeated allegations that had been made for years: That
Schiavo’s husband, Michael, abused her. That he didn’t seek
rehabilitation for her. That he failed to properly care for her.
Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge George Greer, who ordered Schiavo’s
feeding tube removed, had previously found no credibility in those
accusations either. Greer issued an order Thursday requiring DCF to
release the latest records by Monday.
-Art Caplan