This article can be found here.
October 6, 2009
Assisted suicide has been illegal in England for over 50 years, but recent guidelines have been cleared by the courts making it easier for friends or relatives to get away with doing such acts. One way this has been made easier is with the promise of courts to review and judge on these cases individually, and not by one generalized ruling. Some other provisions required that the person aiding a suicide to be motivated by compassion, that the deceased clearly wanted to die, and that the deceased being terminally ill, being severely physically disabled or suffering from an incurable degenerative disease. However, those who assisted in the suicide might be prosecuted if the deceased was under the age of 18, was mentally handicapped or not sure about his or her wishes, or was not being seriously disabled, terminally ill, or suffering from a degenerative disease. Also, if the person aiding in the suicide pressed someone into it or seemed to be motivated by some personal gain, they may also run the risk of prosecution. These measures were passed after Debbie Purdy successfully led a suit against the court on clarifying the law. Purdy wanted to have her husband try and aid in her suicide, but did not want him to go to jail.
No comments:
Post a Comment