Attorney for Cruzans discusses legal 'odyssey'.
On December 11, 1983, 25-year-old Missourian Nancy Cruzan was in a serious car accident, pronounced dead at the scene by police then resuscitated by paramedics. On December 14, 1990, the gastrostomy tube which had kept Nancy alive since the accident was removed and she died 11 days later. The heartbreak, legal maneuvering and impassioned discussions of the 8 years between these events captured the attention of the nation.
D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000328:Adult; D001926:Brain Death / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003128:Coma; D004750:Enteral Nutrition; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D005066:Euthanasia, Passive / Q000266:history / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D005260:Female; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D008923:Missouri; D012297:Right to Die / Q000266:history / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D013219:State Government