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Web, TV, radio fuel speculation about husband By Jim Stratton Orlando Sentinel Staff Writer
March 26, 2005
Psychiatrist Carole Lieberman paints a sinister portrait of Michael Schiavo.
She says he's "pathologically controlling," likens him to O.J. Simpson and calls him a "Prince of Darkness."
"Michael fits the profile of an abusive husband," Lieberman says. "He should most definitely be investigated."
The basis of her conclusions? Interviews with Terri Schiavo's family, which has spent years locked in a legal battle with Michael Schiavo, and a review of news stories and documents posted on the Internet.
"I've never examined Michael Schiavo," Lieberman said Friday.
But that hasn't stopped Lieberman from joining the chorus of voices accusing Michael Schiavo of everything from lying to abuse to murder. His critics refuse to be swayed by voluminous court records that have described Schiavo as a loving husband who is convinced his severely brain-damaged wife would not want to continue living in a persistent vegetative state.
They dismiss a 2003 report to the governor by a court-appointed guardian ad litem who noted that Michael Schiavo was "very aggressive and attentive in his care of Theresa."
The list of people who have harshly criticized Michael Schiavo have ranged from protesters outside his wife's Pinellas Park hospice to radio talk-show hosts to members of Congress.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, has said Michael Schiavo and his attorney are advocating "murder."
Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Indialantic, has called Schiavo a "bigamist" for living with and fathering children with another woman. Despite the fact that Schiavo is with his wife every day, Weldon says he has "abandoned" the 41-year-old woman.
Meanwhile, radio and television airwaves crackle with pundits questioning Michael Schiavo's motives and character. Some, such as Lieberman, have raised the specter of abuse.
The Beverly Hills psychiatrist has appeared on Fox News and on radio stations throughout the country. Twice last week, she was on Orlando radio stations.
Each time, she said Michael Schiavo matched the profile of a wife abuser and called for him to be investigated.
Each time, the hosts introduced her as a respected staff member of the University of California, Los Angeles, medical school -- a description only partially true.
Lieberman has a "courtesy appointment" -- one of about 500 -- at UCLA. She is not paid by the university and has no office there.
She describes herself as a "media psychiatrist" who appears on shows such as Entertainment Tonight and ABC's Good Morning America. Weeks before the Schiavo story exploded, Lieberman was commenting on the breakup of Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt.
That Lieberman is now "profiling" Michael Schiavo -- a central figure in a life-and-death dispute -- based on interviews with people who despise him troubles some doctors.
"You can't do a psychiatric evaluation without conducting an interview" with the subject, said Dr. Wade Myers, chief of forensic psychiatry at the University of Florida. Myers called Lieberman's profile "unethical" and "irresponsible."
But in the superheated atmosphere of the Schiavo case, it is not unusual.
On Web logs, critics hurl unsupported accusations that Michael Schiavo hit his wife after she had been hospitalized or injected her with insulin to hasten her death.
At the hospice, protesters carry signs reading, "Stop the Murderer" and "Michael is a Murderer." Others compare him to convicted killer Scott Peterson.
Lisa Wilson traveled from Kansas to join the vigil in Pinellas Park. Like many in the crowd, she thinks Michael Schiavo can't wait for his wife to die. They claim Schiavo's real motives have been whitewashed by liberal courts. Many of the judges involved, however, are Republican appointees.
"I think he's wanted her dead for a long time," Wilson, 48, said. "I think he was an abusive husband."
Michael Schiavo, his attorney and his family members have insisted none of the claims is true. The courts have reviewed many of the accusations and found them without merit.
And the 2003 report to Gov. Jeb Bush said Michael Schiavo worked tirelessly to help his wife recover after she became brain-damaged. The author, University of South Florida professor Jay Wolfson, wrote that Michael Schiavo and his mother-in-law, Mary Schindler, were "virtual partners in their care of and dedication to Theresa."
Wolfson, director of the university's Florida Health Information Center, spent a month reviewing the case and interviewing its principals in his role as Terri Schiavo's court-appointed guardian ad litem. He said the "evidence was incontrovertible that he gave his heart and soul to her treatment and care."
Of the accusations that Michael Schiavo was abusive or unwilling to relinquish his guardianship for financial reasons, Wolfson said, "There is no evidence in the record to substantiate any of these perceptions or allegations."
But in the firestorm consuming the Schiavo-Schindler families, Wolfson's report has been largely overlooked -- at least by many of the experts commenting on the case.
"I think I read something with his name," Lieberman said. "I can't say for certain I've read his report."
More information:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/college/hurricanes/la-na-michael24mar24,1,3747367.story?ctrack=3&cset=true
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