A brain-dead Texas woman is being kept alive against her own and her family's wishes so her body can incubate her foetus.
Marlise Munoz, 33, was 14 weeks pregnant when she died of a suspected pulmonary embolism - a blood clot to the lungs.
She was found by her husband, Erick, who carried out CPR to no avail.
Erick, Mateo and Marlise
Texan state law requires that a pregnant woman must be kept alive regardless of their wishes or the condition of the unborn baby.
Marlise's father, Ernest Machado, told Dallas News: "That poor foetus had the same lack of oxygen, the same electric shocks, the same chemicals that got her heart going again.
"For all we know, it’s in the same condition that Marlise is in.
"All we want is to let her rest, to let her go to sleep. What they’re doing serves no purpose."
Erick and Marlise both worked as paramedics and as such had spoken of what they wanted to happen if they ended up in a situation like those in which they experienced.
The hospital says Texas law means it can ignore a family directive when a pregnancy is involved.
The case has added to an already heated debate in Texas on abortion with many accusing Marlise's family of wanting to "get rid" of her and the baby.
Erick already has a toddler and wants to shield him from the fallout from the case concerning his mother.
Machado said: "This isn’t about pro-life or pro-choice.
"We want to say goodbye. We want to let them rest."