Originally Posted - December 8, 2005

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CLEARWATER, FLA---Licensed health care practitioner Michael Schiavo of Clearwater remains under investigation by a medical malpractice investigator in the St. Petersburg office of the Florida Department of Health for alleged false sworn statements, The North Country Gazette has learned.

Schiavo is licensed in Florida as a registered nurse and respiratory therapist.

A complaint filed against Schiavo for alleged misrepresentation in his sworn application for employment as a nurse with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Department passed initial department review in September and was deemed legally sufficient for investigation by DOH.

Florida DOH is statutorily given jurisdiction to investigate matters involving possible violations by licensees or allegations of unlicensed practice of profession as regulated by the department which include nursing and respiratory care.

For a complaint to be deemed legally sufficient for investigation, the allegation must constitute a possible violation of a licensee's practice act or governing rules and must contain adequate documentation to support the allegation.

Copies of the employment application which Schiavo had presented to the sheriff's department in July, 2004 were provided with the complaint in addition to a copy of a guardianship application submitted by him in 1990 in which Schiavo allegedly falsely stated that he was the recipient of a degree from Bucks County Community College in Pennsylvania. The complaint also includes allegations that Schiavo failed to comply with provisions of Florida's guardianship law and allegedly violated the state's co-habitation law.

It is alleged that Schiavo misrepresented his arrest record on the application to the sheriff's department. Under the section of the application regarding arrests and summonses, Michael Schiavo omitted at least four citations which by itself is grounds, according to the application, for his termination from employment and should constitute grounds for the suspension and/or revocation of his professional licenses as his application as filed contained alleged false statements. Violations of the co-habitation law constitute misdemeanors.

Schiavo is the husband of the late Terri Schindler-Schiavo who died March 31 at Woodside Hospice in Pinellas Park 13 days after he removed her nutrition and hydration, lobbying in the courts and particularly the court of Pinellas County probate judge George Greer, for nearly a decade to gain court permission to kill his wife.

With the commencement of the formal investigation, Schiavo and his attorney received a copy of the complaint and documents which resulted in the initiation of the investigation. Florida Law prohibits DOH from revealing any further information concerning the complaint or its subsequent investigation until 10 days after probable cause has been found to exist by the probable cause panel or the subject of the investigation waives his or her privilege of confidentiality.

The complaint against Schiavo reportedly alleges unprofessional conduct, failure to comply with Florida Statutes and alleged "deceit, dishonesty and misrepresentation" involving his sworn application for guardianship of his wife and his July, 2004 application for employment as a nurse.

Both the guardianship application and employment application contained statements made under penalties of perjury.

In the case of the guardianship application, this information did not come to light until 2004 due to an alleged intentional misrepresentation by Michael Schiavo that he had presented copies of the application and given notification to the next of kin of his proposed ward, Mary and Robert Schindler Sr., when in fact he allegedly did not nor, on information and belief, did he give them proper legal notice of the hearing conducted for the petition for guardianship. This alleged fraud, concealment and intentional misrepresentation of facts prevented the discovery of the alleged violation and false statement until recently.

According to the clerk's office of the Pinellas County court, although there is a certificate of service on file in the clerk's office indicating that the Schindlers were given notice of the incapacity hearing regarding their daughter on May 22, 1990, there is no reportedly no certificate of service on file giving proof that they were served with notice of the guardianship hearing which was held on June 18, 1990.

In regard to the guardianship application signed under penalty of perjury, Michael Schiavo swears under oath that he attended Bucks County Community College in Pennsylvania for two years and obtained an associate in science degree.

Not only doesn't his employment and education information given on the guardianship application under penalty of perjury match statements he made under oath at a 1993 deposition regarding guardianship and his 2004 employment application with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Department, but according to the admissions office at Bucks County Community College, Michael Schiavo allegedly intentionally, willfully, knowingly and wrongly lied on his guardianship application about his education, saying that he had received an associates in science degree after completing a two year program at the college.

However, an employee in the admissions, registration and records department at Bucks County Community College says that Michael Schiavo is not an alumnus of the school and never received a degree from the facility. She said that Schiavo was registered at the school from 1982 to 1983, not the two years he claims on his sworn application, but did not complete enough credits to receive a degree and did not receive an AS degree from the school as he stated under penalty of perjury on the guardianship application filed with the County of Pinellas.

On completion of the investigation, all information will be forwarded to the DOH legal section for review and a recommendation to the probable cause panel of the health care practitioner's professional board, in Schiavo's case, the Board of Nursing.

The Probable Cause Panel is composed of professionals and/or laymen who are appointed by the Governor to serve as members of the board. It is their decision whether or not formal charges, an administrative complaint, will be filed. An attorney from the department will be assigned to prosecute the case. If probable cause is not determined (there is insufficient evidence to prosecute the case or it appears there is no violation of the licensing law), the Probable Cause Panel will direct that the complaint be dismissed.

Following hearing, if the health practitioner is found to have violated the law, the regulatory board may impose one or one penalties including reprimand, fine, restriction of practice, remedial education, administrative cost, probation, license suspension or license revocation. June Maxam 12-08-05