I always assumed that abortion was what the Lord had in mind when he said “Thou shalt not . . . kill, nor do anything like unto it” (Doctrine and Covenants 59:5). After reading the story of Kate Adamson-Klugman (one summary is available at Common Sense Runs Wild), it occurred to me that other crimes may be included as well. In Kate Adamson-Klugman’s case, there is an amazing parallel to Terri Schiavo.

After a double brainstem stroke in 1995, KAte was completely paralyzed. Kate apeared to be in a hopeless coma and our system wanted to kill her. She seemed less responsive than Terri Schiavo, but was still able to feel and think inside the shell of her body. They operated on her without anesthesia, and she could feel it. They later decided to let her starve, and she could feel it. The eight days of forced starvation after they removed the feeding tube were terribly painful. Fortunately, she had a husband who was not trying to remove an inconvenient spouse. He believed that she could recover, and believed, like Terri’s family, that he had seen signs that she was still there. Her husband fought to keep her alive, and after time and therapy, she progressed to the point that she can speak and write and proclaim to the world that we need to protect the sanctity of life. She and her husband are convinced that the killing of Terri Schiavo was a brutal murder. She can speak from a perspective that demands our attention.