Montana Judge Endorses Right To Assisted Suicide

Montana Judge Endorses Right To Assisted Suicide

www.nytimes.com

The judge, Dorothy McCarter, issued the ruling late Friday in the case of a Billings man with terminal cancer who had sued the state.

In her ruling, Judge McCarter wrote that “the Montana constitutional rights of individual privacy and human dignity” give a mentally competent person who is terminally ill the right to “die with dignity.”

The ruling said that those patients had the right to obtain self-administered medications to hasten death if they found their suffering to be unbearable, and that physicians could prescribe such medication without fear of prosecution.

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Man, does this issue ever hit home for me.

My father is suffering from Lou Gehrigs disease.

He went from being an elite athlete his entire life, to being invalid in short order.

I can't tell you how many times he has said to my mom and I, "Where's Kevorkian when you need him?" He is tired of suffering, and his outlook is one of being a prisoner in a shell that is no longer of any use, and is only getting worse by the day.

I do my best to lift his spirits up, but ultimately it is HE who does not want to continue on being completely crippled and dependent upon others.

While I am not necessarily jumping up and down in regards to the subject of ANY type of suicide, this issue has weighed heavily upon my conscience.

Should someone who is in such a state, with a highly debilitating and terminal illness have the CHOICE to end their suffering, with the help of qualified professionals?

I know the answers will vary widely on this one. But this sure does weigh heavily upon me, for it hits straight home...

www.nytimes.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by DimensionalDetective


Yes, they should, and the people who love them should respect their wishes.

To me, it is as simple as that. Of course, I have been in the situation where my fiance had terminal cancer and wanted to end his life. He was in so much pain, and it hurt me so much to see him like that. The doctors' hands were tied even where his pain management was concerned. It was horrible.

People need to have a say in when to end their own lives, especially terminally ill patients. And, their doctors need to have the right to assist in their pain and their end-of-life decisions.

reply to post by skeptic1


I agree with you. Although I am sure many will disagree on this subject, as it is a highly explosive one. I know that if my dad had the right to assisted suicide, and that was what he truly wanted, I would respect his wishes. He is miserable and exhausted.

Nice find DD!

I agree with you for your reasons 100%.

Sorry to hear about your dad and nothing else can prepare you to speak as an expert on such an issue as what you have personally experienced.

All the best to you and yours.

Where's the Dr. Kevorkian Today

edit: sp on link

[edit on 9-12-2008 by Rollinster]

me and a co-worker were talking about the right to die with dignity not to long ago, what I had brought up with him is if they made it legal was, - would there be an age requirement?

my loving late grandfather died of leukemia after years of chemotherapy along with heart difficulties.

but he was also 72, in the years of rapid advancements in science, how would one look at this if was their child at the age of 8 with the same difficulties.
We respect our children's wishes, but we also shape their understanding -

These topics are just flat out hard to deal with, I can understand for situations like my grandfather, and it would be selfish for me to have wanted to keep in this world, but this goes for anyone that is suffering and wishes for it all to come to an end, If there is nothing that can be done to help them, it is selfish to want to keep them around.

In the article it was up for appeal still for those that wished in an assisted suicide but were mentally ill - even more controversial IMO.

The only thing we own on this planet is our soul. we should have the right to decide whether we want to continue living or put an end to it. A very important part of that ruling is "mentally competent person".