A Chance of Having a Chance: The
Jesse Ramirez Case
By Carrie K. Hutchens
It's happening
again! A spouse attempting to have a spouse starved and dehydrated
to death. This time it is in Arizona.
News reports
state that on May 30th, Jesse Ramirez and his wife Rebecca were in
the mist of an argument, when he lost control of the SUV they were
driving in, which resulted in a roll over crash. Both were ejected
from the vehicle. Jesse, 36, reportedly suffered critical injuries,
which include a broken neck and head injuries, while Rebecca, 33,
suffered only minor injuries.
AZcentral.com's "To
keep him alive or let him die?" by Rich Dubek and Kevin
Kennedy, 12 News (June. 13, 2007 11:37 PM) reports, "Last Thursday,
Jesse underwent surgery. On Friday, Rebecca Ramirez moved him to a
hospice facility and made the decision to pull his feeding tube. She
refuses to talk to 12 News but Jesse's mother Theresa says "he
deserves a chance to live, and she (Rebecca) won't listen."
Dubek and
Kennedy further reported, "An attorney with the Alliance Defense
Fund, a group which supports pro-life causes, is representing the
family. They say while Rebecca Ramirez has certain rights as a
spouse, they question whether she is the right person to decide
Jesse's fate considering their marital problems. Attorneys also say
Rebecca does not have written power of attorney to remove Jesse's
feeding tube. "
I would have
to agree with the attorney and family.
According to
News5's "Judge
Orders Life Support For Patient" (POSTED: 6:17 am PDT June
15, 2007 & UPDATED: 4:00 pm PDT June 15, 2007), "Maricopa County
Superior Court Judge Paul Katz ruled Thursday that the feeding
should continue and Jesse Ramirez be given resuscitation if
necessary."
The report
continues, "Katz ordered that an independent attorney charged with
being Jesse Ramirez's advocate investigate the matter and come up
with recommendations for resolving it."
"Katz also
scheduled a June 26 hearing on the matter."
Also included
in the report by News5, "Ramirez, 33, has said she does not want her
husband to live if he could not care for himself."
Why? Is she
worried that she will be required, as his wife, to care for him?
Nevertheless, she was reported as saying "she does not want", rather
than "Jesse not wanting". Her wanting could be totally irrelevant to
the case. After all, it is "his wanting about himself" that is what
is important here and in every other case.
Luckily, Jesse
Ramirez is in Arizona, rather than Florida with George Felos as his
wife's attorney and Judge George Greer presiding over the case, or
in Texas with the futile care law. At least in Arizona, under the
jurisdiction of Judge Katz, it appears he has a chance of having a
chance. A chance to survive and heal, if that is his possibility!
When did that become too much to ask?
Carrie Hutchens
is a former law enforcement officer and a freelance writer who is
active in fighting against the death culture movement and the
injustices within the judicial and law enforcement systems.
