Benjamin Schreiber, serving life in prison for murder, made an unusual legal request after being revived five times following a medical emergency. In 1996, Schreiber killed John Dale Terry by beating him with a pickaxe handle, earning a life sentence without parole.
In 2015, Schreiber had kidney stones that caused a severe infection, leading to several moments when he was declared clinically dead. Despite a do-not-resuscitate order, doctors brought him back multiple times. Schreiber argued that this meant his “life sentence” was completed since he had died.
However, the court disagreed, stating that “life” means natural life until death, regardless of medical resuscitations. Judges ruled that Schreiber must remain in prison unless he is fully dead. His petition was dismissed as legally unfounded.
Schreiber remained incarcerated until his natural death in 2023. This case drew attention for its unusual legal reasoning. What is your opinion on this story?
