A kid Archie Battersbee, 12, sorrowed traumatic brain injuries after an incident at his home in April. The judge decided that Archie had passed away on the day of his MRI scan on May 31 and that his life support treatment could discontinue after the final hearing on June 13. Let’s see Who was Archie Battersbee, What happened to him and Why is he allowed to die.
Who was Archie Battersbee?
Archie’s mother Hollie Dance has referred to him as a “natural fighter.” According to his relatives, he was a fit young man who participated in gymnastics and mixed martial arts before the accident.
Two years ago, as he observed other fighters praying before matches, his interest in mixed martial arts also sparked an interest in Christianity, they added. After an incident, his mother discovered him comatose on April 7 at their Southend, Essex, home.
She thought he had been participating in a challenge online.
Archie Battersbee, 12, of Southend-on-Sea, Essex, was found on April 7 with a ligature around his neck and hasn’t left the house since. His mother Hollie Dance, speculates that he might have been participating in a specific online challenge at the time of the incident. Hollie Dance, Archie’s mother, and Paul Battersbee, his father, have voiced their opposition to the idea of taking Archie off of life support.
What happened to Archie Battersbee?
Archie was found senseless at home by Ms. Dance on 7 April. Archie was found with a ligature on his head, with his mum thinking that he may have been trying to participate in an online challenge called the ‘Blackout Challenge’.
Archie has not regained consciousness in the two months since the accident and has remained in a coma.
What did the doctors advise?
At the where Archie is receiving care, at Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, the medical staff has stated that they think his life support should be turned off.
Barts Health NHS Trust, which oversees Royal London Hospital and is in charge of Archie’s care, has requested that the court make the choice. The lower portion of Archie Battersbee’s brain stem was severely harmed, and the higher portion was also damaged, according to testing, an expert who cannot be identified earlier informed the judge.
His prognosis was described as “extremely grave,” and he informed the judge that Archie’s chances of recovery were “quite low.”
On Monday, June 6, he gave the judge an explanation of the outcomes of the recent brain and spine scans.
Since earlier scans were performed in mid-April, he claimed there had been no progress and instead, there had been symptoms of worsening. “The scans show far more obvious and greater damage in regions that are critical,” the speaker continued.
Archie Battersbee’s mother Hollie Dance speaks to reporters outside the High Court.
Why was Archie case heard at court?
The legal counsel for Barts Health NHS Trust, Barrister Fiona Paterson, questioned the expert on whether or not scans revealed any dead or decaying tissue in Archie’s brain or spinal cord. Yes, he answered.
And he informed Mrs. Justice Arbuthnot that there was a very slim prospect of recovery. “I believe Archie’s brain damage is so profound that a point of recovery is unlikely.” The scans, if they are evaluated, portray a picture that may be very difficult to bear, Ms. Paterson had earlier told the judge.
Archie’s heart was still beating, lawyer Bruno Quintavalle, who represents Archie’s family, earlier informed the judge. He added that there was a question over “the correct method” and whether the “family’s views” had been taken into consideration.
Doctors informed Archie’s family that they thought his brain damage may have been so severe that he may have been brain stem dead after being transported to the Royal London Hospital in east London.
Doctors wanted to do a brain stem death test, but Archie’s family objected, so the trust filed a lawsuit at the High Court of London to get the test approved. In following hearings, attorneys for the trust had urged the judge to determine what actions would be best for Archie.
Since the tests, additional hearings have been held to decide if life-supporting measures should continue.
After a hearing on June 13th, the judge decided that Archie had passed away on May 31st, the day of his MRI scan and that his life support may be turned off.
Archie’s parents were successful in their appeal for the case to be reconsidered on June 29, and a fresh hearing to decide what is in Archie’s best interests was held on July 11 under the supervision of a different judge. Archie’s life support should be turned off, according to Mr. Justice Hayden, who ruled on July 15 that any further treatment would be “futile.”
The court denied his parents’ request to file an appeal, but they have until 14:00 BST on July 18 to decide whether to do so immediately at the Court of Appeal.
Why Archie was allowed to die?
On Friday (15 July), Mr. Justice Hayden concluded that stopping therapy was in Archie’s best interests after reviewing the evidence during a hearing in the Family Division of the High Court earlier this week.
Archie’s situation was defined by him as a “tragedy of inconceivable dimensions.” Mrs. Justice Arbuthnot, a different High Court judge, had earlier concluded that Archie was deceased.
The conclusions of Mrs. Justice Arbuthnot were challenged by Archie’s parents, and the Court of Appeal upheld their claim and ordered a review of the evidence.
Doctors caring for Archie at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, have informed judges that they believe he is “brain-stem dead” and that it is not in his best interests to maintain life support. The medical testimony, according to Mr. Justice Hayden, was “compelling and unanimous” and portrayed a “bleak” picture.
According to the judge, Archie had a “severe injury” to “many parts” of his brain and had never “regained awareness at any moment” as a result. Mr. Justice Hayden remarked, “Archie’s mother portrayed him as a fighter and I have no doubt he was.”But the fight, if it can properly be.
A rope was placed over Archie’s head when his mother discovered him on April 7; she believes he may have been participating in an online challenge. He still doesn’t seem to be conscious. The medical testimony, according to Mr. Justice Hayden, was “compelling and unanimous” and portrayed a “bleak” picture.
According to the judge, Archie had a “severe injury” to “many parts” of his brain and had never “regained awareness at any moment” as a result. Mr. Justice Hayden remarked, “Archie’s mother portrayed him as a fighter and I have no doubt he was.
“But the conflict, if it can properly be classified as such, is no longer in Archie’s control. “He no longer has any control over his body due to the injury to his brain. “Archie’s organs will eventually quit working, and his heart will stop beating.”
The truth of Archie’s case, according to Mr. Justice Hayden, was “awful.” He stated: “According to the medical research, Archie cannot get better. “Unfortunately, Archie’s brain injury cannot be repaired without medical intervention. “There can be absolutely no hope for healing.” The judge declared that he arrived at his decisions “with genuine sadness.”
As the judge laid out his findings, Ms. Dance, Mr. Battersbee, and other members of Archie’s family were present in court.
Parent’s appeal regarding life support is failed
The 12-year-old boy’s parents were failed in their appeal of the decision to withdraw life support.
The Royal London Hospital believes Archie Battersbee, who was discovered unresponsive at his Southend, Essex, home on April 7th, is brain dead.
Judges on an appeal court agreed with a High Court decision that terminating his life support was appropriate and in his best interests.
Treatment termination must wait 48 hours so that the family has time to file an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights.
When requested to delay their decision because Archie’s father, Paul Battersbee, had fallen ill outside of court, the London Court of Appeal judges declined.
Prior to the hearing, Mr. Battersbee is suspected of having had a heart attack or stroke.
Judges, however, declared that making a decision today was in Archie’s best interests.
Ms. Dance stated that she believed the judges’ decision to forgo a postponement was “insensitive.”
In addition, Ms. Dance requested that the appeal judges delay their decision because she had seen signs that Archie, a ventilator-dependent patient, had twice attempted to breathe on his own in recent days.
The family’s legal team stated that they will address that issue separately with Mr. Justice Hayden, who wrote the most recent High Court’s decision.
Archie, who the courts have been told suffered from severe brain damage, was the subject of a legal proceeding brought by Barts Health NHS Trust, which manages the hospital in Whitechapel, east London.
His parents, who wished for his therapy to continue as he recovered, had already lost two High Court hearings before the judges made their decisions.
The most recent High Court decision by Mr. Justice Hayden has now been rejected by Sir Andrew McFarlane, Lady Justice King, and Lord Justice Peter Jackson.
Therefore, medical assistance for life can terminate legally.
Sir Andrew stated that Archie’s “every physical function is now maintained by artificial means” and that doctors had observed “no evidence of life” in him.
He said that the case had gotten extensive media coverage, which featured an image of Archie.
Sir Andrew remarked, “Archie is no longer the young man in the picture.
After considering the evidence in the Family Division of the High Court in London, Mr. Justice Hayden issued his decision.
Although he called Archie’s situation a “tragedy of immeasurable dimensions,” he also stated that the medical data was “compelling and unanimous” and depicted a “bleak” picture.
Separated from one another, Archie’s parents had claimed that he had made mistakes and had been pleading for a third hearing at the High Court with a new judge.
Archie’s parents’ legal team was led by Barrister Edward Devereux QC, who had complained to the appeal courts that Mr. Justice Hayden had not given Archie’s preferences and religious convictions “true or due weight.”
He also appealed, arguing that Mr. Justice Hayden had failed to conduct a “comprehensive evaluation” of the advantages and disadvantages of continuing life support treatment and that it was incorrect for him to draw the conclusion that treatment was burdensome and futile. He also claimed that Archie’s family’s wishes had not been given “real or proper weight.”
The Christian Legal Centre, a political advocacy group, has helped Archie’s parents.
The Court of Appeal rejected each and every argument.
Tributes to Archie Battersbee
If the brain is dead and is slowly dying, there is no hope. Donate his organs and let him go . His spirit has moved on. Your basically keeping his organs alive, not him ! Prayers !
This is tragic, but he must be allowed to go. What made him human is already gone.
Every sympathy with the parents, their response is entirely understandable in the circumstance. But shame on the religious activists exploiting their pain to offer false hope.
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Lavanya (Senior Editor) is a full-time content writer with almost 5 years of experience and a part-time teacher. She joined Medico Topics on the Breaking News trainee scheme in 2022 and now works on MedicoTopics.com. As a lifelong learner, She is constantly curious about learning new things and passionate about sharing knowledge with people through her writing and teaching.
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