Victory for life! Judge strikes down California suicide law

A California judge has struck down the state's assisted suicide law, saying it was passed unconstitutionally. The victory in court is a win for life, even if only for the short term. Assisted suicide laws in other countries often grow to include healthy victims. 

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Assisted suicide in California has been halted, but only for the moment.

Highlights

By Marshall Connolly (Catholic Online)
Catholic Online (https://www.catholic.org)
5/16/2018 (5 years ago)

Published in Health

Keywords: Assisted suicide, euthanasia, California, Constitutional

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) - California Judge Daniel Ottolia has struck down the state's assisted suicide law by saying it was passed unconstitutionally. Ottolia is a judge in the Riverside County Superior Court. 

Stephen G. Larson who was the lead counsel for doctors who opposed the 2016 law told the Sacramento Bee: "The act itself was rushed through the special session of the Legislature and it does not have any of the safeguards one would expect to see in a law like this."

The liberal state is likely to either resurrect the overturned law or will pass a new one. 

Assisted suicide has been legal in California for terminally ill patients who have less than six months to live. The law was passed by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2016. Since then, hundreds of people have used the law to obtain the lethal cocktail of drugs needed to end their life prematurely. 

Proponents of the law say it allows the terminally ill to die with dignity. 

However, there are many objections to the law. 

In most countries where assisted suicide is legal, the practice has always expanded to include those who are healthy, even children. People who are simply depressed, or who have lost a long loved one, as well as the mentally ill have all been put to death under euthanasia laws in other countries. Many of these victims have been physically healthy. Some have been children. 

Others fear that people could in intimidated to choose assisted suicide for financial reasons. It is cheaper for a person to die than to live out their last few years with assistance. 

A fundamental problem is that people are conditioned to fear pain, suffering, and old age, and to favor speed and convenience. This is artificial. Pain and suffering, while loathsome are also part of life, and are inescapable. Healthy coping mechanisms and spirituality are key to thriving in such conditions. 

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