Charlie Gard Dies in Hospice Care

The parents of 11-month-old British baby Charlie Gard said Friday their terminally ill son has died after being moved to a hospice.

Gard had become the subject of a bitter legal fight between his parents, Connie Yates and Chris Gard, and Great Ormond Street Hospital in London over whether he could be taken to the United States to receive experimental treatment.

Gard’s parents dropped their legal fight after the doctor who had originally offered the treatment said it was too late for it to work.

“Our beautiful little boy has gone, we are so proud of you Charlie,” Yates said in a statement.

Gard was diagnosed with a mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome, an extremely rare condition that causes a loss of motor skills due to muscle weakness. As the disease progressed, Gard was left with extensive brain damage and no hope of recovery.

The London hospital caring for Gard contended that the baby’s condition had deteriorated beyond the point of treatment, and said he should be removed from life support so he could die with dignity.

British and European courts sided with the hospital, denying Gard’s parents from taking him to the U.S. for treatment.

His parents announced Monday they had dropped their efforts to bring Gard to the U.S. for experimental treatment.

“Poor Charlie. It is too late. The damage has been done. Sadly time has run out,” the lawyer for Gard’s parents said Monday. “Sadly the window of opportunity no longer exists. The parents have taken an extremely hard decision.”

On Tuesday, Gard’s parents asked to bring their son home to die, but that request too was blocked by the hospital, which said the infant’s ventilator would not fit through the door of his parents home.

“We promised Charlie every day we would take him home. It seems really upsetting, after everything we’ve been through, to deny us this,” his mother said Tuesday.

Gard’s parents instead asked that their son be sent to a hospice for a few days of “tranquility” before his life support was removed.

Many on social media expressed their condolences over Gard’s passing.

Saddened to hear of the passing of Charlie Gard. Karen & I offer our prayers & condolences to his loving parents during this difficult time.

— Vice President Pence (@VP) July 28, 2017