NATION IN BRIEF : WASHINGTON, D.C. : Deny ‘Right to Die,’ Bishops Urge Court

The nation’s Roman Catholic bishops urged the Supreme Court to deny constitutional status to the “right to die.” At issue is the case of a Missouri woman who has been in what doctors describe as “a persistent vegetative condition” since a 1983 car wreck. Her parents want to withhold food and water from a surgically implanted feeding tube, which doctors say would lead to her death. In a brief filed with the court, the bishops contend that the parents want the court to rule that the Constitution’s 14th Amendment covers the concept of the right to die.