Lynn Vincent on ‘Lawless,’ the Truth About the Terri Schiavo Case, and Why Terri Still Matters
When Terri Schiavo collapsed with a cardiac arrest in 1990, she could have had no idea that 32 years later people all over the world would know her name and care very much about the manner in which she died. What began as a private family tragedy ultimately exploded into an international cultural conflagration and what was perhaps the most important legal case involving American bioethics since Roe v Wade. When it was over, Terri was dead, society was bitterly divided, and our culture changed fundamentally.
Wesley’s guest on this episode of Humanize, journalist and best-selling author Lynn Vincent, spent more than a year researching the Schiavo case for her new podcast Lawless, which examines “the frightening fact of American life that not all crime is against the law.” In 14 detailed episodes, Vincent explores the facts, controversy, and meaning of the Terri Schiavo case.
Vincent is the #1 New York Times best-selling writer of eleven nonfiction books with more than 16 million copies in print. Lynn’s latest book is INDIANAPOLIS: The True Story of the Worst Sea Disaster in U.S. Navy History and the Fifty-Year Fight to Exonerate an Innocent Man (Simon and Schuster 2018.) Written with National Geographic historian Sara Vladic, was chosen as one of the Best of 2018 by Barnes and Noble, Kirkus Reviews, Military Times, Amazon, and NPR.
Among Vincent’s other bestselling books are Same Kind of Different as Me (with Ron Hall and Denver Moore) and Heaven is for Real (with Todd Burpo.) Both were released as major motion pictures.
While on active duty with the U.S. Navy, Vincent served during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Her military experience proved critical in writing Dog Company: A True Story of American Soldiers Abandoned by Their High Command, written with former 101st Airborne infantry commander Captain Roger T. Hill, Dog Company.
A veteran journalist, Lynn’s investigative pieces have been cited before Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court. She has been profiled in major media outlets, including Newsweek and The New Yorker.
Lawless is available for listening on all podcast platforms.