Charlie Gard’s parents ask judge to let ill son die at home
LONDON — Charlie Gard’s parents know their son is about to die. They have one final wish — to take him home, put him to bed and kiss him goodbye.
The mother of the critically ill baby at the center of an international medical and legal battle returned to London’s High Court on Tuesday, asking a judge to let the family take Charlie home for “a few days of tranquility” before his ventilator is disconnected and he is allowed to “slip away.”
After months of court hearings over the 11-monthold baby’s fate that drew attention from Pope Francis, President Donald Trump and people around the world, discussion came down to the heart-wrenching details of ending a life: How could Charlie be transported to his parents’ west London home? Could ventilation be maintained on the way? Would his ventilator fit through the front door of the house?
“The parents’ last wish is to take Charlie home for a few days of tranquility outside the hospital,” family lawyer Grant Armstrong said in a written statement.
He accused London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital, where Charlie is being treated, of putting obstacles in the way of that outcome.
The hospital’s lawyer, Katie Gollop, said Great Ormond Street wanted “above all” to fulfill the parents’ last wish, but also had to take the baby’s best interests into account.
“The care plan must be safe, it must spare Charlie all pain and protect his dignity,” she said.
The hospital said Charlie would be able to die with dignity, surrounded by his family, in a hospice. Armstrong said Charlie’s parents — Connie Yates and her partner Chris Gard — regarded that as the secondbest option, “a notch better” than the hospital.
Judge Nicholas Francis, who has dealt with the emotionally draining case for months, said the sensitive issues cried out “for mediation” — not for the ruling of a judge. But attempts to find agreement have failed.
At the end of a hearing attended by Charlie’s mother, the judge said he felt a hospice would be best. The judge said he would make his final ruling Wednesday.
Charlie suffers from mitochondrial depletion syndrome, a rare genetic disease. He has brain damage and is unable to breathe unaided.