A 12-year-old boy in a coma in the United Kingdom has died after a long legal battle that ended with doctors being able to bring him out of maintenance. Archie Battersbee, 12, died in a London hospital around midday on Saturday, about two hours after doctors stopped his treatment. Young Archie has been in a coma since April 7, when he was initially found unconscious at the family home. Ella Carter, the fiancee of Archie’s older brother Tom, said the family attended the boy’s final moments. “It turned completely blue,” he said. “There is absolutely nothing dignified about watching a family member or child suffocate. No family should ever have to go through what we went through. It’s barbaric.” ‘WREN ELEANOR’ TIKTOK MOVEMENT INSPIRES MIDWIVES ON SOCIAL MEDIA TO REMOVE PHOTOS OF CHILDREN: ‘SICK PEOPLE’ Archie Battersbee, a 12-year-old boy, died on August 5, 2022, after British courts rejected the family’s request for Archie to be placed in a hospice. (Hollie Dance via AP, File) Battersbee’s situation became the latest legal battle to pit parents’ wishes against doctors’ advice. His parents advocated keeping their son alive by extending treatment or moving Archie to a hospice, while doctors said it was in Archie’s best interests to be taken off life support. Doctors at the Royal London Hospital argued that Archie was dead from the brain stem and should be allowed to die. They pushed to end his life-sustaining treatment, which included artificial respiration, medication to regulate his bodily functions and round-the-clock nursing care. JOE ROGAN SLAMS TIK TOK: ‘THE END OF CHINA HAVING ALL YOUR DATA’ The hospital also testified that Archie’s condition was unstable and that moving him would hasten his death. His family objected and said he would not give up hope. On Friday, Supreme Court Justice Lucy Theis sided with doctors, against the parents’ wishes, Judge Archie must remain in hospital and his treatment withdrawn. He died hours later. Reporters’ cameras are lined up at the entrance to The Royal London Hospital in London, Friday, Aug. 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, File) “Their unconditional love and devotion to Archie is a golden thread running through this case,” Theis wrote in her ruling. “I hope that Archie can now be given the chance to die in peace, with the family that meant so much to him, as he clearly does to them.” The European Court of Human Rights refused to intervene in the case. A tearful Hollie Dance, Battersbee’s mother, said she was “the proudest mum in the world”. “Such a beautiful little boy and he fought to the end,” he added outside the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, after the boy’s death. Hollie Dance, mother of 12-year-old Archie Battersbee, speaks to the media outside the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, on August 3, 2022. (James Manning/PA via AP) The case continues a widely debated issue in the UK about how such cases should be handled and whether the court should have a say in the situation — or whether such disputes should be resolved away from the courts. In 2017, a legal battle for the life of Charlie Gard, an infant with a rare genetic disorder, made headlines around the world. In the case, the will of the parents was again pitted against that of the medical professionals. The parents pushed for their son to undergo experimental treatment while the court sided with the doctors, who argued that life support should be ended. POLICE ISSUE WARNING DANGEROUS NEW TIKTOK CHALLENGE IS SCANNING US, SEVERAL ARRESTS MADE British law allows the courts to intervene when parents and doctors disagree about a child’s medical treatment, and a judge then takes it upon themselves to determine the child’s best interests. Battersbee had been unconscious since April 7. His parents believe he may have taken part in an online challenge gone wrong. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP A viral “blackout challenge” on TikTok has led to the deaths of other children, including a 9-year-old girl in Wisconsin and an 8-year-old girl in Texas, whose parents are suing the social media platform. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
