X-Message-Number: 17793 Date: Thu, 18 Oct 2001 23:20:18 -0700 From: Olaf Henny <> Subject: Woman Loses Right to Die Case References: <> Woman loses 'right to die' case October 18, 2001 Posted: 1011 GMT LONDON, England -- A terminally-ill British woman has lost a landmark court battle to "die with dignity" in a setback for supporters of euthanasia. Diane Pretty, 42, who has suffered from motor neurone disease since 1999, had wanted her husband, Brian, to be immune from prosecution if he helped her commit suicide. But three High Court judges in London dismissed Pretty's challenge to the long-standing UK position on euthanasia on Thursday, saying her human right was "to live with dignity, not die with dignity." The Prettys argued that the refusal to overturn a decision by the director of public prosecutions infringed their human rights by subjecting Diane to degrading treatment and by failing to respect her private life. The wheelchair-bound mother is paralysed from the neck down and is too disabled to kill herself. Helping a person commit suicide carries a maximum 14-year jail term in the UK. Her disease is now at an advanced stage with Pretty unable to speak and having to be fed through a tube. Her intellect and decision-making capacity are unimpaired. Lawyers in her case, which had been backed by the Voluntary Euthanasia Society and Liberty, argued at a two-day hearing last week that by denying her the chance to "die with dignity," the law was infringing her human rights. They said Pretty was "frightened and distressed at the suffering and indignity she will have to endure if the disease is allowed to run its course." It was not illegal to commit suicide but it was against the law to assist in a suicide. The "terrible irony" of the case was that she was unable to take her own life without assistance, they added. A key issue in the case was whether the director of public prosecutions had the legal power to give an undertaking not to prosecute her husband of 25 years if he helped his wife commit suicide. Deborah Annetts, VES director, said: "This case has brought about a shift in the way that the issues of assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia are discussed. "There is an increasing understanding that the individual's human rights must take precedence over what the medical profession feels is `best for the patient'." The judges ruling on the case were, Lord Justice Tuckey, Lady Justice Hale and Mr Justice Silber. Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=17793