The rule in Terri's case: an essay on the public death of Theresa Marie Schiavo.

The Rule in Terri’s Case speaks as much to the substance of the law as it does to the political climate that surrounds it—and does so more expressly, indeed, more openly and notoriously than is often the case in United States jurisprudence. The undercurrent of profound enmity that existed between the husband of a severely brain damaged woman and her parents and siblings combined with political and spiritual timeliness to create a perfect storm for the most volatile and litigated end-oflife case in United States history. Make no mistake about it: the Theresa Marie Schiavo case was about right-to-life and abortion as much as it was about privacy, autonomy, death with dignity, and the rights of family members. Here is the cheat sheet formula for the Rule in Terri’s Case: