Assisted suicide, which is sometimes referred to as euthanasia, or “mercy-killing”, refers to suicide that is committed with the help of another person. According to the standard dictionary definition, the term “assisted suicide” is often used interchangeably with “physician-assisted suicide”, which refers to a doctor intentionally providing an individual with the knowledge or ability to commit suicide. This includes providing counselling about the lethal doses of certain drugs, and also the prescribing or supplying of such lethal doses.
But what does this have to do with criminal law in Michigan, you may wonder. Well, while it may be a rarely discussed topic, as it is not something that most people encounter outside of books and movies, it is a matter that the law has a very firm position on. Currently, there are only four states in the US that allow assisted suicide. They are Oregon, Vermont, Montana and Washington. The remaining forty six consider it a crime. In Michigan, assisted suicide is a felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison or a fine of $10,000.00, or both.
Some call that “death with dignity
For those who are in favor of assisted suicide, they say it allows a person who is suffering from a debilitating disease or excruciating pain to select when they want to end that suffering. Some call that “death with dignity.” Celebrities like Stephen Hawking, the well-known theoretical physicist who has spent 23 years on life-support battling ALS, and Terry Pratchett, bestselling fantasy author who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, have spoken out in favor of the legalization of assisted suicide.
In 2011, Pratchett made a highly controversial documentary entitled “Choosing to Die“, in which he discusses his diagnosis and talks about the fact that it should be legal for a person to choose when and how they want to end their life, without fear of prosecution of those assisting them. Hawking has made similar statements in interviews with the media, claiming that keeping someone alive against their wishes is “the ultimate indignity.”
As of now, the only laws that exist in Michigan that allow any one person to make a life or death decision involving themselves or anyone else, is the designation of a patient advocate who may make the decision to have a patient removed from artificial life support. However, this decision must be made in accordance with the patient’s living will, and be overseen by medical professionals.
Interestingly, it was Michigan that gave the world it’s most controversial assisted suicide case in the form of Dr. Kevorkian. Jack Kevorkian, a pathologist from Pontiac, Michigan, was arrested in 1999 for his role in a voluntary euthanasia case. He was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 10 to 25 years in prison. In 2007, Kevorkian was paroled on the condition that he neither promote nor discuss the assisted suicide procedure. Dr. Kevorkian has since passed away.
As of now, there is no indication that the law is going to change in Michigan at any point in the near future. But laws are affected by public opinion, and the tide is slowly turning when it comes to people’s opinions on the issue of assisted suicide. More and more people are deciding that the right to life should also include the right to die.
As criminal defense attorneys in Michigan, we feel it is important to point out to our readers that, while you are legally entitled to disagree with the law, and are free to debate it, challenge it, and petition voters to change it, we do not encourage you to break it. Assisted suicide is illegal in Michigan at this time. But if you or a loved one have been accused of assisting someone in any form of voluntary euthanasia here in Michigan, contact us immediately at Kronzek@KronCron.com. We can help you.