Free Republic

Lawyer: Kevorkian's Health Deteriorating 22 minutes ago An attorney for Jack Kevorkian said the assisted-suicide advocate will probably not survive another year if kept in prison, as he again asked the state to grant his client a pardon or commute his sentence. Lawyer Mayer Morganroth said he applied to the state Parole Board and Gov. Jennifer Granholm on Friday seeking a pardon, parole or commutation, citing the 77-year-old's deteriorating health. "Kevorkian has become increasingly frail and has fallen twice, injuring his wrist and fracturing two ribs," Morganroth said in a statement. His blood pressure has gone "through the roof," the...

ALLENTOWN, Pa. -- Charles Cullen is not going quietly to prison. The man who killed 29 patients in New Jersey and Pennsylvania disrupted his sentencing in the Keystone State Friday afternoon. The judge ordered court officers to gag Cullen. Cullen kept repeating, "Your honor, you need to step down." Court workers tried gagging him with cloth. When that didn't work, they tried duct tape. That didn't work either, so the judge went ahead with the proceeding as Cullen repeated the statement hundreds of times over the course of half an hour. Cullen was apparently angry about a newspaper article in...

Lausanne University hospital, Switzerland has decided to permit assisted suicides starting from January 1, 2006. Assisted suicide has always been considered a form of active euthanasia . In addition to Lausanne, other leading Swiss hospitals are now actively discussing permitting the procedure. Though Swiss law initially did not allow doctors to kill their patients the practice of euthanasia has been gradually extended from private groups into the public health systems. Extensive experience with euthanasia laws in other countries has revealed a consistent pattern. Assisted suicide is presented to the public as a last resort necessary to alleviate human suffering. Once...