Episode 4 - Walk away

In the aftermath of Terri’s death, the Schindlers and Schiavos try to move on and find healing…even as Terri’s legacy continues to play out in the public square.Lawless is listener supported. Find out more at wng.org/donateThis episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

After Terri’s feeding tube is removed once again, the Schindlers’ allies scramble for any last-ditch rescue plans. Some are lawful. Others, less so. Police arrest nearly 50 people who try to bring Terri water. Meanwhile, protesters around the hospice mark the deadly advance of time: Starvation, Day 1…Starvation, Day 2…This episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

Raquel “Rocky” Rodriguez was Jeb Bush’s right-hand advisor during the Schiavo case. In this special episode, Rocky unpacks the governor’s backstage strategies and explains the unwritten decision that tied his hands once and for all.This episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

After Terri's feeding tube finally comes out, Republicans and Democrats come to together in Congress in a new bid to save her. And the fight over Terri's life divides Michael and Jodi—and spills over into Judge Greer's spiritual life.This episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

As international furor over the Schiavo case builds, the Pope issues a statement on the ethics of “life-sustaining treatments.” The Schindlers take it as a sign that the church hasn’t abandoned them. And their lawyers see it as new grounds to keep Terri alive.This episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

The Schindlers have run out of options in the courts. Now, they’re calling up everyone they can think of in every position of power in the state. Soon, governor Jeb Bush is involved. Then the Florida state legislature. Politicians start debating a bill tailor made to keep Terri alive…but critics say it makes a mockery of the Constitution.This episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

Five doctors are lined up to testify in court, deciding once and for all: Is Terri aware…or is she in a vegetative state? But before Judge Greer can hand down his ruling, new evidence surfaces: A bone scan that seems to prove all the Schindlers’ worst fears about Michael.This episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

In April 2001, a call to a local radio show snatched Terri Schiavo back from the brink of death. Now, everybody wants to hear what that caller has to say. The Schindlers hope the new testimony could tip the case in their favor. Somewhere in the flurry of legal maneuvering, one man decides to slow down and talk to the person at the heart of the case: Terri herself.This episode was updated/remastered May 2025.

In Season 2 of Lawless, some of the world's most powerful people join the Schindlers in their fight to save their daughter, Terri: Congress, the President, the U.S. Supreme Court, and even the Vatican weigh in. What had been a private legal battle explodes into a national obsession that sharply divides America...but time is running out.

For a week, both sides present witnesses, evidence, and expert testimony in the trial over Terri’s feeding tube. Michael and the Schindlers are exhausted, but the fight isn’t over yet. Judge Greer’s ruling kicks off a new era of legal moves and countermoves, and sets the Schiavo case on a path to the highest levels of American government.This episode was updated/remastered April 2025.