In two 1997 decisions, the Supreme Court ruled that there is no
constitutional right to physician-assisted suicide. Yet for many
people this concept strikes to the heart of our sense of liberty
even as it tugs at our hearts in the face of human suffering.
"Lethal Judgments" examines those cases, the law surrounding the
plaintiffs' claims, and the moral debate over physician-assisted
suicide. A concise and gracefully written overview of one of the
most complex and contentious areas of American law, it lays out the
conflict between individuals supporting privacy rights, due
process, and equal protection, and those for whom moral and ethical
considerations trump such concepts.
Noted constitutional scholar Melvin Urofsky discusses the
tangled legal, historical, ethical, and medical issues related to
right-to-die arguments, then examines the Supreme Court's position
in Washington v. Glucksberg and Quill v. Vacco. He shows how these
1997 cases relate to two other famous cases-Karen Ann Quinlan and
Nancy Beth Cruzan-and carries the controversy up to the recent
trials of Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Urofsky considers the many facets of
this knotty argument. He differentiates between discontinuation of
medical treatment, assisted suicide, and active euthanasia, and he
sensitively examines the issue's social and religious contexts to
enable readers to see both sides of the dispute. He also shows that
in its ruling the Supreme Court did not slam the door on the
subject but left it ajar by allowing states to legislate on the
matter as Oregon has already done.
By treating assisted suicide simply as a legal question,
observes Urofsky, we miss the real importance of the issue. For
patients with AIDS, cancer, and other debilitating illnesses--or
even for those feeble from age--physician-assisted suicide is an
expression of personal autonomy, and as modern medicine learns new
ways to prolong life, more and more people will seek to exercise
this option. Because right-to-die cases are likely to come before
the high court again, this book provides students and general
readers with a timely appreciation of their importance for legal
theory and a useful way to reflect upon the choice between life and
death.
General
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