• Assisted suicide refers to the process by which someone who is incapable of unwilling or doing so alone, is given help (usually by means of medication or equipment) to commit suicide. This process is also known as 'death with dignity'. Assisted suicide is illegal in most U.S. states.

  In February, 2009 four people from Georgia and Maryland were arrested for assisted suicide in connection to an investigation of the organization Final Exit Network. Police believe they assisted John Celmer, 58, to commit suicide in June 2008.CNN: Four arrested in 2 states in assisted-suicide probe (February 26, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Illegal in most U.S. states
  2. Legal in Switzerland and Netherlands
  3. When the assistance is provided by a physician, it is called PAS, or physician-assisted suicide
  4. The most common type of assisted suicide is the distribution of lethal medicationUniversity of Washington School of Medicine: Physician-Assisted Suicide
  5. Not the same as when a doctor gives medication to reduce suffering which might hasten death, but that is not the primary purposeUniversity of Washington School of Medicine: Physician-Assisted Suicide
  6. Patients are also generally allowed to refuse treatment that would allow them to stay alive longerUniversity of Washington School of Medicine: Physician-Assisted Suicide
  7. October 27, 1998: Death With Dignity Act passed in Oregon
  8. November 4, 2008: Death With Dignity Act Passed in Washington State, takes effect on March 5, 2009
  9. December 6, 2008: Physician-assisted suicide endorsed by judge in Montana
  10. 57% of physicians have received requests for assisted suicideEnd of Life: Introduction to Physician-Assisted Suicide

• Legality

  The Death with Dignity act of Oregon has been in place since October 27, 1998. It allows terminally-ill residents of Oregon, who are of sound mind, to end their lives through voluntary self-administration of lethal medications that have been prescribed by a physician specifically for that purpose.Oregon.gov: Death With Dignity Act

  Washington became the second state to enable the Death with Dignity Act on November 4, 2008.Death With Dignity: Road to Success in Washington Montana followed suit on December 6, 2008.Huffington Post: Montana Assisted Suicide Ruled The decision in Montana is being appealed.Boston Herald: Lawmaker wants NH to legalize assisted suicide (February 25, 2009)

• Final Exit Network

  The Final Exit Network is based in Atlanta, Georgia. According to its Web site, it is a network of volunteers who are "dedicated to serving people who are suffering from an intolerable condition" and offers "counseling, support and even guidance to self-deliverance". Police believe the network assisted John Celmer, 58, to commit suicide. Celmer died in June 2008, and investigators say he died from helium inhalation. He suffered from a mouth and throat cancer. Four people from the network has been arrested in relation to Celmer's death. Investigators say the network charges $50 for people to join. The people from the network then visits the members and describes how to commit suicide by using helium tanks. They are also present during the time the member commits suicide. The arrests were part of a larger investigation into the network, and the network has also been linked to the death of a depressed and mentally ill woman who died in 2007.CNN: Four arrested in 2 states in assisted-suicide probe (February 26, 2009)

• Dr. Jack Kevorkian

  Jack Kevorkian was born in Pontiac, Michigan, May 28, 1928, the son of Armenian immigrants. In 1952 he graduated from University of Michigan medical school with a specialty in pathology.Jack Kevorkian: Chronology of Jack Kevorkian's Life In 1988 Kevorkian's article The Last Fearsome Taboo: Medical Aspects of Planned Death, was published in Medicine and Law. In it, he outlines his proposed system of planned deaths in suicide clinics, including medical experimentation on patients.

  Over a number of years Kevorkian assisted in the suicide of a number of patients by hooking them up to a machine that he made in his apartment. He called it the "Thanatron". The device allowed the person to push a button that would release chemicals that would terminate their life. Once his license was revoked, he no longer had access to the chemicals. He then used another device that he called the "Mercitron", which served the same purpose by delivering carbon monoxide through a gas mask.Trinity: Jack Kevorkian, The Right to Die? After three acquittals, and a mistrial, Kevorkian was sentenced to 10-25 years in prison in 1997. He was released from prison on June 1, 2007.International Task Force: The Real Jack Kevorkain

• Related Pages on Mahalo

  Suicide | Right-to-Die Controversy | Depression | Mental Illness | Deathcasting | Jack Kevorkian | Daniel James | Craig Ewert

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