My Precious

Greetings:

It seems that there has been a lot of attention focused lately on Munoz Family problems with John Peter Smith (JPS) hospital in Fort Worth.  It seems that about 8 weeks ago Eric Munoz found his wife, Marlise Munoz, lying unconscious on the kitchen floor.  She was 14 weeks pregnant then and is about 22 weeks pregnant now.  But, here's the kicker; she has been pronounced "brain dead" and the family wants JPS to take her off of life support.  In effect, killing the baby as well.  JPS has refused citing a 1999 law that requires a hospital to keep a woman on life support if she is pregnant.

Eric's lawyers say that this law was never intended to apply to someone who is "brain dead."  Question:  To whom would this law apply?  A woman who is fully conscious does not need life support.  I would think that this is exactly the kind of situation to which this law would apply.  Anyway, according to the Dallas Morning News, on Friday afternoon (yesterday) a local judge ruled that JPS had to remove all life support from Marlise Munoz by Monday afternoon, presumably by 6:00 p.m. or before.  In effect, killing the baby as well as killing Marlise's brain-dead body.  The baby is now 22 weeks old and will be what is called by the press a "viable fetus" in another two weeks. So, since the baby could be delivered by Ceaseran section in two or three weeks the family is, effectively, having an abortion for Marlise.   Remember, she was 14 weeks pregnant when she slipped into a coma and could have had an abortion at any time before that had she chosen to do so.  Apparently she did want the baby before the accident and subsequent hospital stay.

But the family says that had she known that the baby was deformed she would have chosen abortion.  And the family says that the baby is not only deformed (legs) but also has heart problems and water on the brain.  Something that JPS has neither confirmed nor denied.  My question is this:  If the baby were "viable" at this time could you perform an abortion?  Not on your Nelly!  It would be the same as killing a three-year-old baby because it was deformed, had brain damage and heart problems.  The first question is, "At what point is the beginning of life?"  The local and national press, as well as the family, believe that life begins at 24 weeks when the baby can be delivered but that Marlise is only 22 weeks pregnant now and should have the abortion by effectively killling her brain-dead body.

In Torah study on the past Monday, one of the gentlemen (obviously of the more "Liberal Jew" classification) in the class protested that,"What if the fetus is deformed and/or has brain damage?"  He is of that class that does not understand that life begins when G-d creates it, at conception, not some "legalese" definition of life such as that determined in our courts.  Obviously I am in the more "Conservative" or "Orthodox"Jewish belief that G-d's court has already determined that the baby is alive.  It is funny that people in the USA have been convicted (legally, in court) of murder for causing a woman to miscarry, even before the magical 24-week statute of "viability" period.  Yet, this judge had determined that the baby is still a fetus and not yet alive since it is not 24-weeks old.  In two more weeks, it will be what they call a "viable fetus" and re-classified a "baby" by law.  I am not sure but it seems that if the "fetus" were not brain damaged and/or deformed that the family would want Marlise kept alive.  Or so it seems.  They have not publicly stated one way or the other except to declare that the baby is deformed and has brain damage.  I am still waiting for JPS to confirm or deny that report.  But it does not really matter, does it?

So, feel free to comment, for or against killing Marlise's brain-dead body and her baby.  Or not.  I will publish anything that is "readable" one way or the other.  Meaning, no name calling, no angry anti-abortion or pro-abortion rants but something intelligent and readable by high-school students or college freshmen.  (College FreshLadies?) No profane nor vulgar language, please.

Shalom,
Yaakov