大脑受损妇女的父母上诉美国最高法院

 

Brain Damaged Woman's Parents Appeal to US Supreme¹ Court

大脑受损妇女的父母上诉美国最高法院

 

Terri Schiavo's parents filed an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court, asking that her feeding tube be reattached.

 

Terri Schiavo has been in what doctors call a persistent³ vegetative state since suffering brain damage after suffering a heart attack in 1990.

 

Her husband, Michael Schiavo, maintains Terri would not have wanted to be kept alive through the use of a feeding tube. That view has been upheld by state courts in Florida and by federal courts.

 

Michael Schiavo's brother Scott defended the removal of Terri's feeding tube on NBC's 'Today' program.

 

Scott: This is not about anyone else but Terri. This is about a promise that Terri and Mike both made to each other that they would not allow each other to be kept on a machine [connected to a feeding tube] like this, kept alive artificially.

 

The move to put the Schiavo case before the U.S. Supreme Court came after a day of setbacks for Terri's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, who are desperate to reattach a feeding tube that was removed last Friday.

 

A federal appeals court in Atlanta, Georgia, denied their request on Wednesday even as Terri's mother, Mary Schindler, pleaded for intervention⁵ outside the Florida hospice where her daughter resides.

 

Mary Schindler: Please, someone out there, stop this cruelty. Stop the insanity⁶. Please, let my daughter live.

 

In another setback⁴ for the parents, a state court in Florida rebuffed Governor Jeb Bush's request to allow the state to take Terri into protective custody⁷ and reattach the feeding tube.

 

Governor Bush, who is the brother of President Bush, urged calm at a news conference after several protesters were arrested trying to bring water to Terri Schiavo.

 

Governor Bush: I urge all who want to help Terri Schiavo to honor by remaining calm and reacting peacefully, even though we are all very distressed⁸ by what is happening.

 

The emergency filing before the Supreme Court by Terri Schiavo's parents urges the high court to follow the direction set by the Republican-led Congress earlier in the week when it demanded that the feeding tube be reattached while the case was considered by federal courts.

 

Congress took the unusual step of passing a law on short notice, which was signed by President Bush.

 

But the president told reporters in Texas Wednesday that the courts will have the final word in the Terri Schiavo case.

 

Bush: The legislative⁹ branch, the executive branch ought to err² on the side of life, which we have. And now we will watch the courts make its decisions.

 

Supporters of Terri Schiavo are not optimistic about their chances before the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court has declined previous opportunities to get involved in the Schiavo case.

 

Jim Malone, VOA News, Washington.

 

 

注释:

emergency [i5mE:dVnsi] n. 紧急情况

the supreme court 最高法院

persistent vegetative state 持续植物状态

federal courts 联邦法院

NBC (Nuclear,Biological,Chemical) 核生物化学总称

artificially [7B:ti5fiFEli] adv. 人工

setback [5setbAk] n. 复发

insanity [in5sAniti] n. 疯狂

rebuff [ri5bQf] v. 回绝

distressed [di5strest] adj. 哀伤的

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 err   

vi.犯错误，出差错

参考例句：

• He did not err by a hair's breadth in his calculation.他的计算结果一丝不差。
• The arrows err not from their aim.箭无虚发。

3 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

4 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

5 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

6 insanity   

n.疯狂，精神错乱；极端的愚蠢，荒唐

参考例句：

• In his defense he alleged temporary insanity.他伪称一时精神错乱，为自己辩解。
• He remained in his cell,and this visit only increased the belief in his insanity.他依旧还是住在他的地牢里，这次视察只是更加使人相信他是个疯子了。

7 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

8 distressed   

痛苦的

参考例句：

• He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑，无法回答他们的问题。
• The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。

9 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。