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Sue Rodriguez

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Submitted By shadowkitty24
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Sue Rodriguez was a 42 year old woman living in B.C. who was suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a terminal illness that caused her a lot of pain and suffering (Smith, 1993.) She wanted to end her life with the assistance of a qualified physician. However, Section 241(b) of the Criminal Code made assisted suicide an indictable offence (Smith, 1993.) She said “if I cannot give consent to my own death, whose body is this? Who owns my life?” and was inspired to work to change the law (Smith, 1993.) Sue Rodriguez put in a lot of time and effort to try to change the law. She applied to the Supreme Court of British Columbia for an order declaring s. 241(b) invalid under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Smith, 1993.) The B.C. court dismissed her application so she then appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada (Smith, 1993.) In the Supreme Court of Canada, Sue Rodriguez argued that s. 241(b) violates sections 7, 12, and 15 of the Charter (Smith, 1993.) Section 7 of the Charter granted her right to life, liberty, and security of person (Smith, 1993.) She argued that s. 241(b) prohibited a person from aiding her to end her life when she could not do so without assistance, thus depriving her of liberty (Smith, 1993.) She was also deprived of her security of the person because s. 241(b) deprived her of her ability to control decisions about her body which caused her physical pain and psychological stress (Smith, 1993.) Sue Rodriguez also argued that s. 12 of the Charter gave her the right to not be subjected to any cruel or unusual punishment or treatment, and by not being able to end her life she was being forced to endure a prolonged period of suffering (Smith, 1993.) Section 15 of the Charter claims that every individual is equal before the law and has the right to equal benefit of the law without discrimination, including discrimination based on physical disability (Smith, 1993.) Rodriguez argued that s. 241(b) discriminated against disabled people because people who are not disabled were able to legally commit suicide, yet people who cannot physically commit suicide without assistance were deprived of that benefit of the law (Smith, 1993.) In the end, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled against Sue Rodriguez 5-4 claiming that society’s obligation to preserve life and protect the vulnerable outweighed the rights of Sue Rodriguez (CBC News, 2009.) Rodriguez ended up committing suicide in 1994 with the help of an anonymous doctor (CBC News, 2009.) While she failed to get assisted suicide legalized in Canada, her battle and death forced a critical debate on this controversial topic (CBC News, 2009.) While assisted suicide remains illegal in Canada, this law is getting changed in many parts of the world (CBC News, 2009.) The Netherlands, Belgium, and Switzerland all openly and legally authorize assisted suicide (CBC News, 2009.) Other countries also seem to show slow movement towards legalizing assisted suicide (CBC News, 2009.) Assisted suicide and euthanasia was almost legalized in Luxembourg however the legislation was lost by a single vote in March 2003 (CBC News, 2009). In Britain the legislation was defeated in the House of Lords in May 2006 (CBC News, 2009.) In conclusion, although Sue Rodriguez lost her battle to legalize assisted suicide in Canada, her long fight to that goal and her eventual death inspired a lot of debates and controversy over whether assisted suicide should be legal. Since this law is being changed in other parts of the world, there is hope that someday it may be changed in Canada.
Bibliography
CBC News (2009, February 9). The fight for the right to die. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/02/09/f-assisted-suicide.html

Smith, M. (1993, October). The Rodriguez case: A review of the Supreme Court of Canada decision on assisted suicide. Retrieved from http://dsp-psd.tpsgc.gc.ca/Collection-R/LoPBdP/BP/bp349-e.htm

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