[nprateem]

It seems to me that the Ship of Theseus is relevant [1]. A temporary loss of heart beat/breathing in a body receptive to resuscitation - and which is resuscitated - shouldn't really be considered dying. We don't consider the continual loss and replacement of bodily tissue over the course of several decades to result in a new person, or that waking after sleeping is classified as a new birth.

And anyway, if the guy was declared dead, should he have expected a new birth certificate and to have his age reset to 0? Would he really suggest someone could be "born" into someone elses body? In that case, perhaps he should be "exorcised", or is he claiming he's now a zombie? Do zombies have legal rights? If not, what was he proposing was the relationship between his pre "dead" personality/identity and his new one?

You can see why the judge went the way he did...

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship_of_Theseus