A federal judge is holding off ruling on a motion seeking the release of a dying federal inmate, as attorneys scramble to find a way to give her the legal legs to stand on.

Evansville attorney John Goodridge has entered the case on a "pro bono" basis to craft a legal argument for a court order that would compel the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to release 48-year-old Darlene Fortwendel of Tell City, Ind., from a Texas prison hospital before she dies.