Contact: Alexandra Snyder, Life Legal Defense Foundation, 202-717-7371

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Feb. 16, 2018 /Christian Newswire/ -- A hospital in Jacksonville, Florida wants to withdraw food and water from a patient who recently suffered a gunshot wound. Joel Zuniga was unable to breathe on his own after being shot. Only two weeks after his injury, the hospital unilaterally determined to remove Joel's ventilator, over the objections of his family.

Fr. David Nix, the family's priest and a former EMT and paramedic, encouraged the family to instruct the hospital not to give Joel a heavy dose of narcotics when doctors removed the ventilator, so as not to suppress his ability to breathe. The hospital begrudgingly complied.

Fr. Nix was present to administer last rites. Joel struggled to breathe for a few minutes and then, miraculously, began taking full breaths! He has now been off of artificial respiration for two days and his vital signs are good.

Although Joel has suffered brain damage and is unable to speak, he is awake and is starting to show some response when his family talks to him.

Now the hospital is refusing to provide Joel with proper nutrition and hydration. The family finally convinced doctors to give Joel an IV, but they still refuse to feed Joel. Health care providers have also tried to pressure Joel's parents—who only speak Spanish—to sign a form that would only give Joel "comfort" care in an attempt to withdraw all treatment, including food, water, and antibiotics.

As we write this, a Life Legal affiliate attorney is in court, fighting for Joel's life.

"Joel is 33 years old and he was shot in the head. He survived the gunshot and was on a ventilator at Memorial Hospital for two weeks. When he was taken off the ventilator, he immediately began breathing on his own. Joel is even able to make eye contact and he understands us. Joel's projected "quality-of-life" is the reason his physician has decided to withhold all food from this patient. Happily, Alex, his brother recorded this conversation of clear euthanasia. The staff at Memorial Hospital is starving him to death and we are so thankful that Legal Defense Foundation is willing to fight for Joel's life." Fr. Dave Nix

"This is one of the most egregious cases of denial of health care I have ever seen," said Alexandra Snyder, Life Legal Defense Foundation's Executive Director. "Joel's parents are in a particularly vulnerable position because they do not speak English. The hospital is exploiting their inability to question its course of action that are putting Joel's life at risk. Joel is a young man in his early thirties who is showing remarkable signs of recovery, yet the hospital is taking aggressive measures to end his life."

About Life Legal Defense Foundation
Life Legal Defense Foundation was established in 1989, and is a nonprofit organization composed of attorneys and other concerned citizens committed to giving helpless and innocent human beings of any age, and their advocates, a trained and committed voice in the courtrooms of our nation. For more information about the Life Legal Defense Foundation, visit www.lldf.org.