Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Department of Health
United States Supreme Court
497 U.S. 261 (1990)
Nancy Cruzan remained in a persistent vegetative state with no cognitive function after a car accident, and her parents (plaintiffs) sought to remove her feeding and hydration tube based on statements she had made to a friend about not wanting to live a diminished life; Missouri's highest court held that evidence of her wishes wasn't clear and convincing enough to authorize her parents to make that decision on her behalf, and the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Whether a state may require a guardian seeking to remove life-prolonging treatment prove by clear and convincing evidence that an individual in a persistent vegetative state would have wanted the treatment withdrawn under such circumstances.