Schiavo parents, Bush lose another appeal

WASHINGTON, March 24 (UPI) -- A Florida judge Thursday refused Gov. Jeb Bush's appeal about additional evidence regarding Terri Schiavo, leaving the woman without nourishment or water.

Judge George Greer handed down his decision just hours after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to order a feeding tube -- Schiavo's only method of receiving nourishment -- be re-inserted. The tube was removed on Greer's order last Friday after the woman's husband requested it be pulled.

Last week's decision set off a flurry of legal and political actions -- all of which have failed. Bush's latest appeal involved allegations of neglect and abuse and suggests that Schiavo is not in a persistent vegetative state.

Terri Schiavo suffered brain damage 15 years ago after a heart attack. Her husband, Michael, has argued his wife told him she did not want to live in such a state and has been trying to have the feeding tube removed for years.

The woman's parents, Robert and Mary Schindler, want her kept alive, but have been defeated consistently in court. Thursday was the fifth time the U.S. Supreme Court refused to intervene in the case.