Assisted Suicide Group Indicted
Thomas Goodwin of Kennesaw faces a felony charge in Minnesota after similar charges were dismissed against him in Georgia.
A Kennesaw man and three other members of the nonprofit Final Exit Network right-to-die group were indicted Friday for their alleged roles in the 2007 suicide of a Minnesota woman, reported Apple Valley Patch.
Thomas "Ted" Goodwin, 65, of Kennesaw and Punta Gorda, FL faces a felony charge of assisting 57-year-old Doreen Dunn to commit suicide and a gross misdemeanor charge of interference with a death scene.
Also indicted were Jerry Dincin, 81, of Highland Park, IL; Lawrence Egbert, 84, of Baltimore, MD; and Roberta Massey, 66, of Bear, DE.
In May 2007, Dunn placed a plastic bag attached to a helium tank over her head to end her life, reported Apple Valley Patch. She allegedly was in the presence of at least two volunteers from the Final Exit Network at the time.
An autopsy initially found that Dunn died of coronary artery disease. But Minnesota authorities reopened their investigation into her death in late 2009 after Georgia officials contacted them about a similar case.
Goodwin was arrested in Georgia in 2009 and accused of assisting in the suicide of a 58-year-old Cumming man, but the charges were dismissed against him and three others in February of this year. Georgia's Supreme Court cited free speech violations as the basis for its unanimous decision. At the time, Georgia law prohibited advertising assisted suicide services, but not the act of assisted suicide itself.
On May 1, Gov. Nathan Deal signed a bill making it a felony to help people take their own lives. Sponsored by Rep. Ed Setzler, HB 1114 was passed in response to the Supreme Court's February decision.
Do you agree with Geogia's new law banning assisted suicide? Share your opinion in our comments section.
The Minnesota indictments—based on laws that are “significantly different” from those in Georgia—came after an “extremely lengthy” investigation, Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said Monday.
Georgia’s statute "only prohibited public advertising and public offers to assist another person in the commission of suicide,” Backstrom said. “Minnesota’s law includes both public and private advice, encouragement or assistance to a person contemplating suicide.
“What we’re alleging occurred here is private advice or encouragement. That’s unique to Minnesota.”
Lynda
7:54 am on Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Totally DO NOT agree with banning assisted suicides for fatally ill people. If we can make it a peaceful journey to heaven with our pets, why can't we treat each other with the same dignity?
Vicki Yates
9:17 am on Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Anyone with a terminal illness should have the right to decide when and how they die, and be allowed the assistance of a physician in that decision.
JJ
4:15 pm on Friday, May 18, 2012
No, they should just be forced to live because life is a gift from God. You do not help someone take that gift away.
Catherine Ontko
9:55 am on Wednesday, May 16, 2012
I do not agree with the banning of assisted suicide in Georgia. I feel that individuals have the right to choose how they die and if they prefer physician or any other type of assistance then so be it. It is their decision and no one else should be prosecuted for assisting them.
I love Georgia
11:43 am on Wednesday, May 16, 2012
It's a very personal decision and I don't think it should be criminal. We should have the greatess compassion for those in such dire straights. It would probably not be for me, but one never really knows till they reach that point.
JJ
4:14 pm on Friday, May 18, 2012
THIS IS ABSOLUTELY ABSURD. YOU SHOULD NEVER HELP SOMEONE TAKE THEIR OWN LIFE. THAT IS NOT RIGHT.
Karen Cast
2:11 am on Saturday, June 23, 2012
You've never watched anyone die slowly of cancer, have you?
swampmedic89
5:54 pm on Saturday, June 23, 2012
As a person who has seen death in all forms and in people of all ages, this is a VERY PERSONAL decision. It is their decision and if wrong, THEY will have to deal with their deity of choice. This state has shown it's backwards thoughts already banning marijuana for terminally ill patients, I am sure it will keep up this ban and we will continue to respond to people who fail at their attempts causing them, and the family more grief than would be present in a regulated efficient "suicide factory." This is where separation of church and state should come into play.........not the pledge or crosses on a mountain!
sometimesanaccidentcanbeapersonsbestfried
7:18 am on Thursday, August 30, 2012
Well, they banned abortion for a very long time. Guess the government thinks they have the right to make decisions for people . After all they are not dealing with a terminal diagnosis. If they were they wouldn't be so quick to make that decision for someone else. Glad to know that just because they would make the decision to ride out the illness, then so should I. You think this is a free counrty you live in?