(Washington Examiner) – David Ruiz made one thing clear to his family in recent years: If he ever became totally reliant on machines to keep him alive, they were not to disconnect him.
“We had this conversation at length over and over, the entire family,” said his mother, Patricia Adames. “He said, ‘Don’t ever take me off.’ He was adamant. He said, ‘I know I’m going to be alive in there.'”
Adames promised her son she would respect his wishes, which he’d expressed following the death of her nephew, who was taken off a ventilator after drowning.
Only a couple of years later, she’s standing beside her son at a Catholic hospital in Tucson, Ariz., where doctors have declared him brain dead, advocating for Ruiz to receive care.
Ruiz, 32, had a stroke on New Year’s Eve and was rushed to Carondelet St. Joseph’s Hospital. He was declared brain dead about two weeks later. His food supply was cut off Jan. 9 and his water supply on Jan. 13, according to advocates involved in the case. CONTINUE