(Lakeland, FL) – The American Center for Law and Justice, an international public interest law firm specializing in constitutional law, today filed its brief with a Florida appeals court asking the court to overturn a decision by a circuit court judge who has blocked Robert and Mary Schindler – the parents of Terri Schindler Schiavo – from intervening in a lawsuit to defend “Terri’s Law” – legislation that cleared the way for Florida Governor Jeb Bush to restore life-saving measures to Terri Schindler Schiavo.

“We are asking the appeals court to permit Terri’s parents to take a direct and active role in defending the state law that is the only thing keeping their daughter alive,” said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ, which is representing the Schindlers in the state case. “We believe the action taken by the legislature and the Governor is not only appropriate but constitutional as well. In this case, the parents have a right to be involved directly in a case that will ultimately decide the fate of their daughter – whether life-saving measures remain in place to protect Terri’s life, or whether her husband succeeds in removing the measures that will result in Terri’s death. We are hopeful the appeals court will permit Terri’s parents to become directly involved in this critically important case.”

Last month, Pinellas County Circuit Court Judge W. Douglas Baird denied a motion made by the ACLJ on behalf of the Schindlers to intervene in the case and denied a motion asking the judge to reconsider that decision. The ACLJ did file an amicus brief on behalf of the Schindlers in an effort to ensure that the views of the Schindlers would be heard in the constitutional challenge of “Terri’s Law.”

In filing the appeal today with the Florida Second District Court of Appeal in Lakeland, the ACLJ argues that the statute “does create a right or benefit for the Schindlers: it provides the sole legal barrier between their daughter and her death by starvation and dehydration. Thus, the challenged law – and the stay the Governor issued pursuant thereto – provide the decisive protection of the Schindlers’ interests in saving their daughter and pursuing guardianship of her. To argue that the Schindlers have no sufficient interest in the case or possess no right or benefit at issue in this case completely ignores the facts.”

The ACLJ also argues “not permitting them to intervene will, at a minimum, deprive the Schindlers of their input regarding issues affecting the life of their child, and, at a maximum, may violate their constitutional rights to be heard. Terri’s parents have a strong interest in the outcome of this case, as the life of their child may be dependent upon the constitutionality of the challenged statute.”

The brief contends that limiting the involvement in the Schindlers to the filing of the amicus brief “is certainly insufficient to protect the Schindlers’ direct interest in the outcome of this case.”

“We believe the legislature and the Governor acted in a convincing and constitutional fashion in the passage and implementation of ‘Terri’s Law,’” said Sekulow. “We want to make the strongest arguments possible on behalf of Terri’s parents. And, to do that, we believe Terri’s parents must be permitted to intervene directly in this case.”

Terri’s husband, Michael Schiavo, wants Terri’s feeding and hydration tubes removed. He filed suit challenging the constitutionality of “Terri’s Law” and has the support of the ACLU.

The ACLJ is representing the Schindlers in Schiavo v. Bush – the legal challenge to the constitutionality of the actions of the Governor and state legislature. Patricia Fields Anderson, an attorney in St. Petersburg, is representing Terri’s parents in all other aspects of the Schiavo case.

The American Center for Law and Justice is an international public interest law firm specializing in constitutional law and the protection of human life. The ACLJ is based in Washington, D.C. and its web site address is www.aclj.org.