Woman seeking suicide law clarification.

[warrenpenalver]

Ok as some of you may know a woman with a crippling illness is "seeking clarification" on suicide law in high court today because she is considering topping herself abroad when she feels her quality of life is such she doesnt want to live.

 

 

Now the issue of suicide and the "assistance" recieved by her partner is NOT what confuses me.

 

 

What confuses me is the suicide is occuring in a foriegn country so i dont understand how the partner can ever be arrested or charged under UK law????

 

The offence is clearly happening outside the uk so how is it the UK can arrest them??????

 

I dont understand??

 

Surely if you murder someone abroad you get charged and imprisioned abroad???

 

Im confused!!! surely the crime is commited in the country it takes place??? (i know some internet crimes are exception)

 

If thats not the case then does that mean i can get penalty points on license for speeding abroad??

 

Surely then all the pot heads who go to amsterdam should be arrested on return to UK???

 

Can anyone explain it to me???

 

[Mumble]

Assisting someone to commit suicide, is illegal in the UK and by UK citizens. Assisting someone to commit suicide, either in this country or abroad (even in countries where it is not illegal to its own citizens, such as Switzerland) is illegal, and the person assisting will be questioned and could face a jail sentence on returning to UK soils. However despite this, no-one has ever been charged for assisting suicide of people who have gone abroad, although they have been questioned. The woman in question has been seeking clarification to ensure that her husband does not face questioning and potential (although unlikely) sentencing.

 

The issue you raise about other crimes abroad is very much part of the argument here and it does seem to be rather ad hoc depending upon the 'crime'. Euthanasia is a highly emotive and oft debated subject in this country and perhaps we (courts, lawyers etc.) need to go further than the case here and make the situation very clear, for currently DNR orders are allowed but assisting isn't. There are many ethical issues involved because there has to be absolute proof that the person committing suicide wanted to die - otherwise it is murder - but in some cases it may be difficult for the patient to convey their wishes or for it to be clear that they haven't been coerced into the situation.

[warrenpenalver]

I still dont understand what gives the UK government the right to charge and prosecute UK citezens for doing something abroad. If it doesnt consitute a crime in the country the "act" is committed then i dont see how the UK government has a right to intervene on criminal terms. Yes they could intervene under international laws, such as if it was genocide etc but i dont see what gives them the right to do that for UK citizens who are not commiting a crime under the host country laws.

 

and you are right, it seems they are making it up as they go along. If an offence is commited in UK it doesnt matter if its smoking weed, speeding or murder, its still an offence!!!

 

An offence is an offence..... so if they want to argue suicide abroad constitutes and offence IN THE UK, then they have to apply the same principle to all other offences here, for example anyone going over 70mph on the german autobahn's could under that sytem get speeding ticket over here, people going to amsterdam for drug smoking and kerb crawling could be done too surely???

 

 

Its total insanity!!!

 

Does this also mean uk citizens keeping thier assets abroad to avoid tax can now be taxed???

 

I just dont see how the government can reasonably make up the law as they go along to determine which laws here apply to our citizens abroad.

[Kathryn]

I don't know the answer to this, Warren.

 

Unless helping to make arrangements for the assisted suicide, which obviously would take place beforehand in the UK, is considered to be part of the offence.

 

K x

[Mumble]

Unless helping to make arrangements for the assisted suicide, which obviously would take place beforehand in the UK, is considered to be part of the offence.

I read some more and this seems to be the argument. I may have been mistaken before actually - it seems the law isn't sure whether assisted suicide outside the UK is illegal or not (I guess laws haven't been updated since people travelled to do this) - it is definatly illegal within the UK though.