PROTESTERS BECOME MORE INTENSE; SCHINDLER ADVISES THEM TO GO HOME

The update from the last 24 hours in the Terri Schiavo case:

--- Her parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, were denied an appeal (pdf format)by the Florida Supreme Court of a previous decision by Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge George Greer. They had stated earlier that no further appeals would be forthcoming on the federal level, and Bob Schindler told the St. Petersburg Times that the state appeal was likely the final judicial attempt in the years-long battle.

--- The state and Jeb! have at least two appeals pending before the state's Second District Court of Appeal, based in Lakeland. That court has previously blocked attempts by the governor and state to intervene.

--- While protesters were planning an Easter Sunday Mass outside the Pinellas Park hospice where Terri is staying, the Schindlers urged them to go home and spend the time with their families. Protesters have reportedly become more intense and resulting in chaos, as the number of law enforcement officers has increased as a result.

--- Family supporters are saying that Terri's condition continues to deteriorate, and her breathing has become increasingly laboured. One attorney said that hospice workers have begun giving Mrs. Schiavo morphine.

--- On Saturday the spiritual advisor of Terri's parents, who are devout Roman Catholics, requested that he be allowed to give her Holy Communion. That request was denied. She had received Communion and last rites on the day her feeding tube was removed by court order. The order from Judge Greer says that she can receive Communion once more before her death, and the hospice chaplain will determine the appropriate time.