Life Support Debate Over Stroke Victim

Family members are battling over whether to remove a feeding tube from a Florida woman who remains paralyzed and speechless after a stroke seven months ago.

Karen Weber, 57, remains attached to a feeding tube in a nursing home despite the belief of her husband, Raymond, that she would want the plug pulled and be transferred to hospice care. But her mother, Martha Tatro, and other family members say she is alert and responsive in a developing legal battle reminiscent of the 2005 Terry Schiavo case, the Palm Beach Post reported Monday.

Mr. Weber is of the opinion that Karen does not want to live as a vegetable and that she would prefer the body to take its natural course, said his attorney, Colin Cameron.

She blinks for yes or no. She shakes her head. She waves goodbye and she can laugh at jokes, Tatro said.

An Okeechobee County judge has issued a court order blocking removal of the tube until a court-appointed medical panel decides whether she is capable of deciding her own fate.