Published 22 September 2009, doi:10.1136/bmj.b3909
Cite this as: BMJ 2009;339:b3909

News

Consultation opens on guidance for prosecuting in cases of assisted dying

Clare Dyer

1 BMJ

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Friends or relatives who help a loved one to commit suicide will not be prosecuted if the would be suicide has a clear and settled intention to die and the helper does not encourage the suicide but assists out of compassionate motives, say guidelines issued this week by the director of public prosecutions for England and Wales.

The policy statement from Keir Starmer comes after a legal victory by Debbie Purdy, who has primary progressive multiple sclerosis. The ruling, from the UK’s highest court, required the director of public prosecution to clarify when loved ones would or would not face prosecution for aiding and abetting a suicide (BMJ 2009;339:b3131, 31 Jul, doi:10.1136/bmj.b3131).

Ms Purdy won the ruling from five law lords after arguing that without clear guidance she would have to commit suicide while she was still able to act independently or run the risk of her . . . [Full text of this article]


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Relevant Article

Purdy wins battle for clarity of law for people who accompany relatives abroad for assisted suicide
Clare Dyer
BMJ 2009 339: b3131. [Extract] [Full Text]

This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Brannan, S, Davies, M, English, V, Mussell, R, Sheather, J, Chrispin, E, Sommerville, A (2010). Ethics briefings. J. Med. Ethics 36: 63-64 [Full text]  

Rapid Responses:

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Hopes falsely raised
Don C Aston
bmj.com, 24 Sep 2009 [Full text]
More confusion rather than clarity
David G Samuel
bmj.com, 27 Sep 2009 [Full text]
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