Fifty-one-year-old Scott Roeder has been convicted of the murder of one of the only doctors in the US who offered late-term abortions.

A US federal appeals court raised a flicker of hope for the parents of brain dead Terri Schiavo, but snuffed it out by firmly declining to intervene in the gruelling legal battle.

TERRI SCHIAVO'S parents know their brain-damaged daughter is dying and are "dealing with reality", a family spokesman said yesterday, even as their supporters pledged to take their fight to Washington.

Their hopes fading and legal options exhausted, Terri Schiavo’s parents appeared quietly resigned to watching her die, but could claim one Easter victory: The severely brain-damaged woman received a drop of communion wine on her tongue – her only sustenance in nine days – after her husband allowed her to receive the sacrament.

The son of a Christian activist known for his strident opposition to abortion and homosexuality, has made a startling announcement – he’s gay.