Originally Posted - February 13, 2006

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He was the attorney for Hospice of Florida Suncoast Inc., owner and operator of Hospice House Woodside in Pinellas Park, Fla., where Terri Schindler-Schiavo was virtually imprisoned for the last five years of her life by her estranged husband and guardian, Michael Schiavo and his attorney, George Felos, chairman of the hospice board of directors at the time of her admission.

He was director of "organizational ethics" at the Hospice of Florida Suncoast in Largo and a former member of Hospice's board of directors.

He is a director of Hospice Systems Inc. whose president is Mary Labyak, CEO of Hospice of Florida Suncoast.

He was a campaign contributor to Pinellas County Probate Court judge George W. Greer who signed the death warrant for Terri Schiavo at the behest of Michael Schiavo who was living in adultery with Jodi Centonze with whom he fathered two children out of wedlock.

Now we learn that he---David E. Ridenour---was a member of the marriage tribunal of the St. Petersburg Roman Catholic Diocese under the leadership of Bishop Robert N. Lynch, the tribunal which sanctioned the marriage of Lutheran Michael Schiavo and divorcee Jodi Centonze in the Espiritu Santos Catholic Church in Safe Harbor on Jan. 21---in fact, Ridenour acted as the Defender of the Bond of the marriage between Jodi and Michael.
http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/012206Wedding.html and http://www.espiritusanto.cc/es/cms/core/Home

Noted canon lawyer and Catholic author Pete Vere says that the marriage of Schiavo and Centonze is invalid because of crimen and he says an investigation is due. Church law says you can't kill your wife in order to marry another woman.

Does that make Ridenour an accessory to crimen?

According to Catholic canons, crimen (latin for crime) is an impediment to marriage, crimen being when a surviving spouse causes the death of his or her spouse. The survivor is prohibited from gaining from that deed and attempting another marriage in the Catholic church.

Only the Holy See can grant dispensation and that apparently has not occurred which would render the Schiavo-Centonze marriage invalid by church law.

Although Terri was not terminal and the proper certification for her admission to hospice wasn't completed, Ridenour apparently had no problem with it, allowing the hospice to collect Medicare and Medicaid to which it wasn't legally entitled.

Now he has apparently had a role in sanctioning a marriage which is prohibited by church law and for which the required dispensation wasn't granted.

A Marriage Tribunal is a diocesan office staffed by persons who are appointed by the Bishop and who have received special education and preparation to represent him and the faith community in Church proceedings for marriage cases.

The Marriage Tribunal helps divorced people who ask for an investigation of the prior marriage(s). After gathering as much information as possible, the judge makes a human decision in the name of the Church community as to whether the couple is still bound to the former marriage or may be free to enter into another marital relationship.

Any divorced person who seeks possible remarriage in the Catholic Church must have each prior marriage examined by the Marriage Tribunal for a determination of its validity.

The other spouse must be notified that a formal marriage case has been submitted to the Marriage Tribunal, out of fairness and since both parties can exercise certain rights given in Church law in a formal case process.

Either a panel of judges or a single judge of the diocese issues the first decision in a formal marriage case. If the decision is affirmative, the case must be reviewed by an appellate court to ensure that the case was proven and properly prepared as directed by Church law. If the appellate court also issues an affirmative decision, then a decree for a declaration of invalidity is issued and the parties are notified.

If a declaration of invalidity is granted by the Marriage Tribunal, does that mean both parties may remarry?

Yes. However, in some marriage cases, certain conditions or restrictions may be placed on one or both parties before they can marry in the church, especially if serious psychological or relational difficulties were evident in the former marriage.

The Office of the Tribunal serves the Bishop and the people of the Diocese of St. Petersburg and is staffed by Judges, Defenders of the Bond, a Promoter of Justice, a psychological expert and Ecclesiastical Notaries.

The Tribunal processes all petitions for Declaration of Nullity or "annulments" within the diocese. The Tribunal is also charged with the regulation of the Sacrament of Marriage within the diocese. All requests for permission and/or dispensation to marry are processed by this office. If a priest or deacon decides to delay a marriage, the Tribunal also serves as the first instance of recourse. The Tribunal also serves as the canonical consultant to the diocese on matters pertaining to the Sacraments of the Church and the application of Canon Law.

The Judicial Vicar for the Marriage Tribunal of the St. Petersburg Diocese is the Rev. Msgr. Dacian Dee. The Promoter of Justice is the Rev. Stephan Dambrauskas and Defenders of the Bond are Rev. Dambrauskas and Ridenour.

A day after they obtained a marriage license from the clerk of the circuit court of Pinellas County, Michael Schiavo and Jodi Centonze were wed Saturday, Jan. 21 in the Espiritu Santo Catholic Church in Safety Harbor in a private ceremony apparently known only to family, friends and the St. Petersburg Times.
http://www.espiritusanto.cc/es/cms/core/Home

The Rev. Robert J. Schneider is pastor of the church but it is still unknown who officiated at the ceremony.

The church is part of the Diocese of St. Petersburg of which the Most Robert N. Lynch is bishop. Although Lynch was Terri's bishop, he stood by silent while she was forcibly starved to death----after she struggled to declare that she wanted to live. Bishop Lynch issued a statement directly at odds with church teaching that food and water is basic sustenance and cannot be withheld by private choice.

The Catholic church prevents someone from entering a marriage when in order to be free to contract such a marriage that person had brought about the death of a former spouse.

According to canon law, three things are required in order for the canonical impediment of crimen to apply.

The original parties, Terri and Michael Schiavo must have been validly married. They were---on Nov. 10, 1984, in Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Southampton, Pa. with about 200 guests present.

At the time of the killing, the surviving spouse must be intending to enter marriage with a specific person. Michael Schiavo clearly intended to marry Jodi Centonze upon the death of his wife, refusing to divorce Terri. He had announced his engagement to Jodi in July, 1997, while his wife was still living and did so, in all places, in his mother's obituary.

Thirdly, the death of one spouse must have been brought about by the surviving spouse. The entire world knew that Michael Schiavo had been battling Terri's parents, Mary and Bob Schindler, in the courts for over eight years to end the life of his wife.

According to Catholic canons, crimen (latin for crime) is an impediment to marriage, crimen being when a surviving spouse causes the death of his or her spouse. The survivor is prohibited from gaining from that deed and attempting another marriage in the Catholic church.

Pete Vere, a canon lawyer and a Catholic author recently penned "After Death Do We Part", appearing in the Catholic Exchange.
http://www.catholicexchange.com/vm/index.asp?vm_id=114&art_id=31747

Like other canon lawyers. Mr. Vere believes that the marriage of Michael Schiavo and Jodi Centonze is invalidated by the impediment of crimen. He says that the tribunal would not really have played a part in the determination of crimen, that they would have only ruled on the issue of Jodi's prior marriage and the fact that Michael Schiavo is not of the Catholic faith.

"If you forget to get a permission, the marriage is valid", Vere says, "but if you forget to get a dispensation, it's not. A permission would never affect the validity of the marriage, a dispensation does".

"Because of crimen, they would have to get a dispensation. That can only be dispensed by the Holy See and as far as I can tell, there is crimen on both parts".

There are two definitions of crimen and Vere says that while the first definition could be circumstantial, the second one is the one applicable, "if they cooperate in Terri's death".

Mr. Vere's article, "After Death Do We Part", follows:

"Like many people, I was disturbed by news of Michael Schiavo's recent wedding to his fiancée Jodi Centonze. As Gudrun Schultz reported on Life Site News, "Michael Schiavo, who had his disabled wife Terri killed last March by refusing her food and water, was remarried last Saturday (Jan. 21) in the Roman Catholic Church of Espiritu Santo in Florida. Schiavo married Jodi Centonze. He had two children with her during the years he worked towards achieving Terri's death."

"Yes, you read that right. After bringing about the death of his first wife, a Catholic church allowed Michael to attempt a second marriage within its sacred confines. The report also states: "The Catholic Church of Espiritu Santo, where Michael Schiavo's second marriage took place, is in Bishop Lynch's diocese of St. Petersburg." Being a canon lawyer, I note that this is not the first time Bishop Lynch's interpretation of canon law has been at odds with that of the Holy See. Nevertheless, I remember that we as lay folk have a duty to pray for our pastors.

"Michael Schiavo's wedding caused quite a stir among Catholic bloggers. One news report noted that there was no homily at the wedding. "The priest offered no homily?" replied Fr. Rob Johansen, a young priest who happens to be a close friend of Terri's family. "Well, what could the priest say? Don't kill this one, Michael?"

"One of Mark Shea's readers was a little more succinct: "I too, am disgusted and outraged." I sympathize with this fellow, however, I find myself too disgusted to be outraged.

"Like my colleague Dr. Ed Peters, I wonder about the validity of Michael and Jodi's marriage. Canon 1090 §1 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law is clear: "One who, with a view to entering marriage with a particular person, has killed that person's spouse, or his or her own spouse, invalidly attempts this marriage."

"Canon 1090's second paragraph is similarly clear: "They also invalidly attempt marriage with each other who, by mutual physical or moral action, brought about the death of either's spouse." Thus canon 1090 defines what canonists call the marriage impediment of crime (or crimen).

"Setting aside the civil legalities, or the fact he carried out his actions with the blessing of the state, can anyone dispute that Michael Schiavo brought about his wife Terri's death with the full intention of marrying Jodi? After all, throughout his court battles with Terri's parents Jodi was Michael's fiancée, the mother of his two children and the object of his extra-marital engagement.

"Can anyone deny that Jodi colluded, at least morally, in this action? This is not a matter of gossip, hearsay or idle speculation. Rather it is a well-documented incident that played out before millions of people for several years. As such, it is a matter of public record.

"Thus permission for Michael and Jodi's marriage would have had to come from the Holy See. Unlike most other impediments to marriage, only the Holy See can dispense from the impediment of crime (canon 1078 §2.2). Without this dispensation, the Church would consider such a marriage invalid under normal circumstances. Was such a dispensation sought and obtained from the Holy See?

"I do not know with certitude, but I have my personal suspicions. The Holy See usually requires some expression of remorse before even considering a dispensation from crimen. After all, the Church wishes to avoid a repeat incident. And when the case is this public, the Church will often require that the expression of remorse be public.

"Neither party appears to have publicly expressed remorse. If they have, the media failed to pick it up. This would include the pro-life media that almost always rejoices over that type of conversion story. Yet given Michael's recent founding of a political action committee - one dedicated to defeating politicians who attempted to save his former spouse's life - I think we can safely assume that Michael publicly stands by his actions in bringing about her death. In this light, Michael's second Catholic wedding is a scandal to Christ's faithful, if indeed the Church recognizes it as valid.

"Rather than stand for this scandal, Catholics should write Francis Cardinal Arinze at the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments and ask for an investigation into this matter. Here is His Eminence's address:

Francis Cardinal Arinze, Prefect
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments
Palazzo delle Congregazioni
Piazza Pio XII, 10
00120 CITTÀ DEL VATICANO, Europe

June Maxam 2-13-06

© 2005 North Country Gazette