Sarah Wootten from the group Dying in Dignity, the leading assisted suicide advocacy group in the UK has called for changes to the assisted suicide laws in the UK based on two recent court cases, the Gilderdale case and the Inglis case.Wooten stated:
As demonstrated here and in the case of Frances Inglis last week, the existing law doesn't work in practice and is not in line with public opinion. Ultimately, we need a full public consultation on whether the law should change, to regulate and legalise assisted dying for terminally ill people and to create a specific or partial defence of "mercy killing" for these offences.
I am convinced that Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions, set-up the acquital of Gilderdale by prosecuting her with attempted murder, when in fact her act was really an assisted suicide. Gilderdale pleaded guilty to assisting the suicide of her daughter, but Starmer decided to also prosecute her with attempted murder, a charge that he knew was unlikely to result in a conviction, thus creating new pressures to change the laws in the UK that prohibit assisted suicide.
The Euthanasia Prevention Coalition is demanding the resignation of Keir Starmer. We are convinced that the damage he is creating for the rule of law in the UK will result in laws that protect people with disabilities, long-term chronic conditions, and the frail elderly are at risk so long as he remains the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Link to the commentary by Sarah Wootton from Dying in Dignity: http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/sarah-wootton-only-clearer-laws-can-bring-compassion-to-the-euthanasia-debate-1879738.html
Link to my previous post on the case:
http://alexschadenberg.blogspot.com/2010/01/motion-in-british-parliament-questions.html
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