Lawsuit Filed to Stop California Assisted Suicide Law!

The Life Legal Defense Foundation filed a lawsuit today challenging California's assisted suicide law.

The civil rights lawsuit alleges Equal Protection violations of individuals labeled terminally ill and was filed by five doctor and by the American Academy of Medical Ethics (AAME),

 

The Act decriminalizes physician-assisted suicide and instantly removes criminal law, elder abuse, and mental-health legal protections from any individual labeled terminally ill.  By contrast, non-labeled Californians have legal protection that makes it a felony to aid, advise, or encourage another to commit suicide.

The lawsuit asks the court to uphold civil and criminal laws that should apply equally to all Californians, including laws that protect people from self-harm and elder abuse laws.

To see a copy of the plaintiffs' application for a temporary restraining order, click here.

California's New Assisted Suicide Law: Whose Choice Will it Be?

http://jurist.org/hotline/2015/10/margaret-dore-physician-assisted-suicide.php

JURIST Guest Columnist Margaret Dore argues that a new law to legalize assisted suicide is a recipe for elder abuse and family trauma, and that it will encourage people with years to live to throw away their lives...

©  WikiMedia (Christopher Padalinski)

California has passed a bill to legalize physician-assisted suicide, which is scheduled to go into effect during 2016. "The End of Life Option Act" was sold as giving patients choice and control at the end of life. The bill, in fact, is about ending the lives of people who are not necessarily dying anytime soon and giving other people the "option" to hurry them along. The bill is a recipe for elder abuse and family trauma.

Voices Against Assisted-Suicide

1.  Will Johnston, MD, "[My] young adult patient became actively suicidal after watching a Brittany Maynard video.”

2. Carolyn McMurray:"Not everyone has family members to protect them."

3.   Oregon doctor, Kenneth Stevens, MD, "Vote against ABX2-15, in order to save people’s lives!"

4. Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA (“Legal assisted-suicide can be traumatic for patients and tear families apart”).

5. Kate Kelly (“Doctors are already abusing the power they have").

6. Elizabeth Poiana (“Older people are no longer valued”)

Choice is an Illusion News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 22, 2015

Contact: Margaret Dore, Esq.
206-697-1217

To view pdf, click here

San Francisco, CA -- Opponents of the assisted suicide bill on Governor Jerry Brown's desk spoke out at a San Francisco news conference today to expose how AB2X-15 encourages people with years to live to throw away their lives and is a recipe for elder abuse, in which "qualifying" individuals may be legally murdered for their money.

"The bill is sold as giving people an 'end of life option,'" said Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, a national expert on assisted suicide and euthanasia, who spoke at the San Francisco news conference led by Bay Area political leader Frank Lee.  "The bill is instead about ending the lives of people who aren't necessarily dying anytime soon, and giving other people the 'option' to hurry them along.  Governor Brown should veto this bill, which fails to assure choice and opens the door to lethal abuse."

The bill applies to people with a "terminal disease," which is defined as having a medical prognosis of less than six months to live. "Such persons can, in fact, have years to live," said Dore. "The more obvious reasons are misdiagnosis and the fact that predicting life expectancy is not an exact science. Doctors can sometimes be very wrong."

ABX2-15 is based on laws in Oregon and Washington State. "In Oregon, which has nearly identical terminal disease criteria, 'eligible' persons include young adults with chronic conditions such as insulin-dependent diabetes," Dore said. "Such persons, with appropriate medical care, can have years, even decades, to live."

Dore, an attorney in Washington State, explained "In my law practice, I started out working in guardianships, wills and probate, and saw abuse of all kinds, especially where there was money involved (where there's a will, there are heirs)." Dore elaborated, "And it didn't have to be that much money. The middle class and the poor were also victims."

"The Oregon and Washington laws were enacted by ballot measures in which voters were promised that 'only' the patient would be allowed to self-administer the lethal dose. The Oregon and Washington laws don't say that anywhere --and the California bill is just as bad," said Dore. "These laws create the perfect crime. Your heir can help sign you up, and once the lethal dose is in the home, there is no oversight over administration. If you resisted, who would know?"

"Another way to look at it," Dore said, "is that these laws allow two people to be present at the death. One leaves alive and the other leaves dead, and the one that leaves alive is allowed to inherit from the dead person. What happened?"

Dore concluded, "ABX2-15 creates the perfect crime."

For documentation, see:

1.  Dore memo to Governor Jerry Brown.  To view memo attachments, click here.
2.  Margaret Dore, " Why ABX2-15 Must be Vetoed," Choice Illusion, September 20, 2015, and
3.  Margaret K. Dore, "' Death with Dignity': What Do We Advise Our Clients?," King County Bar Association, Bar Bulletin, May 2009,

   - 00 -

Why ABX2-15 Must be Vetoed

ABX2-15 seeks to legalize physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. The bill is a recipe for elder abuse in which a "qualifying" individual may be legally murdered for the money.  For more detail, see this memorandum and its attachments.  

KEY POINTS

1. ABX2-15 applies to people with a "terminal disease," which is defined as having a medical prognosis of less than six months to live. (Memo, p.9). Such persons can, in fact, have years, even decades, to live. The more obvious reasons being misdiagnosis and the fact that predicting life expectancy is not an exact science. (Id., pp. 11-12). Doctors can sometimes be widely wrong. (Id.).

2. In Oregon, which has a nearly identical definition of “terminal disease,” eligible persons include young adults with chronic conditions such as insulin dependent diabetes. (Memo, p. 9-11). Such persons, with appropriate medical care, can have years, even decades, to live. 

3. ABX2-15 allows the patient's heir, who will financially benefit from his/her death, to actively participate in signing the patient up for the lethal dose. (Memo, p. 7). This is an extreme conflict of interest.

4. Once the lethal dose is issued by the pharmacy, there is no oversight. Not even a witness is required when the lethal dose is administered. If the patient protested or even struggled against administration, who would know? (Memo, pp. 8-9).

5. Assisted suicide can be traumatic for family members as well as patients. (Memo., pp. 12-13)

6. If California follows Washington State, the death certificate is required to be falsified to reflect a natural death. (Memo, pp. 16-18). The significance is a lack of transparency and an inability to prosecute for murder even in a case of outright murder for the money. Id. 

Contact the Governor now to stop assisted suicide/euthanasia.

Outright Lies to Trusting Legislators Gets California Bill to Governor's Desk.  Tell Jerry Brown to Veto ABX2-15 Now!

• Call 916-445-2841!
• Fax 916-558-3160 
• Use this form to send an e-mail to Governor Brown:  https://govnews.ca.gov/gov39mail/mail.php  (US Mail will be too slow)

On Friday, September 11th, ABX2-15 passed the Senate just weeks after its initial introduction during a special session called for another purpose. During its short and expedited life, proponents ran roughshod on the facts to induce busy legislators to vote yes. This was evident during the final floor debate in the Senate where proponents repeatedly stated or implied the following, which are not true:

1.  That the bill is limited to people who are actively dying and in pain. The bill doesn't say this anywhere. The bill, instead, applies to people with a "terminal disease" defined as having a prediction of less than six months to live. (Memo, pp.9 -12). Such persons can, in fact, have years, even decades, to live.  (Id.) In Oregon, which has a nearly identical definition, "eligible" persons include young adults with chronic conditions such as insulin dependent diabetes. (Id).

2.  That the bill is "one of the strongest bills regarding patient protections." The bill, however, doesn't even require a witness when the lethal dose is administered.[1] If the patient protested or struggled, who would know?[2] In addition, the bill's various legal "requirements" are not actually "required." This is because participants are merely held to a "good faith" standard.[3] This standard is not defined in the bill, but common meanings include that participants need not comply with legal technicalities when they have honest intent.  See, for example, this legal dictionary definition:

[Good faith means] honest intent to act without taking an unfair advantage over another person or to fufill a promise to act, even when some legal technicality is not fulfilled.  (Emphasis added).[4] 

For these and other reasons, tell Jerry Brown to veto ABX2-15. For more information, see: Dore letter discussing why the Baker amendments did not fix the bill's problems; Dore memo why the financial cost of ABX2-15 could be "enormous"; and a formal memo regarding the bill generally, including "key points," an index, a formal memo and an appendix.

* * *
[1]  See ABX2-15 in its entirety.
[2]  Id.
[3]  ABX2-15, Sections 443.19(d), 443.14(b), 443.14(d)(1) and 443.15(c).
[4]  "Hill" citation at http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/good+faith

Governor Brown must veto assisted suicide legislation.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                           

September 11, 2015       

Contact: Margaret Dore
206-697-1217

Sacramento, CA -- In light of today's final passage of assisted suicide legislation by the California State Senate, a national expert on assisted suicide and euthanasia made the following comments.

"The legislation passed today is a wolf in sheep's clothing," said Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, regarding ABX2-15, which seeks to legalize physician-assisted suicide (and euthanasia) in California. "The bill is deceptively written to make it look as if there are substantial patient protections; there are not. The bill is sold as giving people choice and control at the end of life: Instead, it's stacked against the patient and applies to people with years, even decades, to live."

"In my law practice, I started out working in guardianships, wills and probate, and saw abuse of all kinds, especially where there was money involved (where there's a will, there are heirs)," Dore explained. "ABX2-15 sets up the perfect crime: your heir can actively participate in signing you up for the lethal dose and once the lethal dose is in the home, there's no oversight --not even a witness is required. If you resisted or even struggled, who would know?"

Dore concluded, "The ball is now in the governor's court to protect the people of California by vetoing ABX2-15. As a lawyer and a former attorney general, Jerry Brown has the expertise to see the bill for what it really is.  He has all the right reasons to veto this deceptive and unsafe legislation.

For documentation, see www.choiceillusion.org and www.californiaagainstassistedsuicide.org