The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Charlie’s parents ready to launch another appeal
COURT: Judge says he will consider new evidence and examine arguments
The parents of terminally-ill Charlie Gard are preparing for another round in their fight to be allowed to take him abroad for treatment.
Chris Gard and Connie Yates, from Bedfont, west London, want a judge to rule that 11-month-old Charlie, who suffers from a rare genetic condition and has brain damage, should be allowed to take part in a therapy trial in the US.
Specialists at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, where Charlie is being cared for, have said therapy proposed by a doctor in America is experimental and would not help and that life-support treatment should stop.
Charlie’s parents asked European court judges in Strasbourg to consider their claims after losing battles in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court in London.
But Strasbourg judges refused to intervene.
The couple have now asked a High Court judge in London to carry out a fresh analysis of their case.
Mr Justice Francis, who in April ruled in favour of Great Ormond Street doctors and decided Charlie should be allowed to “die with dignity”, oversaw a preliminary hearing in the latest round of litigation yesterday.
He told the couple he had already analysed the case at a trial and would not rake over old facts, but he said he would consider any new evidence and would examine the couple’s arguments “calmly and fairly”.
He said Charlie’s parents should outline any new evidence they had and that he would reconsider their arguments on Thursday.
Lawyers representing Great Ormond Street and a guardian appointed to independently represent Charlie’s interests told Mr Justice Francis they were struggling to find any new evidence.
Barrister Grant Armstrong, who led Charlie’s parents’ legal team, told the judge that hospitals in the US and Italy had offered treatment.
He said seven international experts had supported the treatment the couple wanted Charlie to have.
Mr Armstrong said there was “encouraging” evidence.
Lawyers representing Charlie’s parents, who are working for free, suggested another judge should analyse any fresh evidence.
Mr Justice Francis disagreed: “I did my job. I will continue to do my job.”