Governor Jerry Brown made headlines recently when he authorized a new assisted suicide bill for terminally ill patients. That doesn’t mean anyone interested in committing suicide or helping suffering patients can go about the process without serious effort though. If you are accused of aiding, advising or encouraging a suicide without following the proper legal protocols of the new law, please call a top La Jolla defense lawyer as soon as possible.
While the new right-to-die law has enabled assisted suicide for terminally ill patients, those participating must undergo a detailed process to ensure the patient is in complete control and in his or her right mind. Specifically, the bill requires that patients can take the medication themselves, that the patient submits multiple written requests, that the decision is approved by two doctors and that there are two witnesses present -and one of those witnesses is not a family member. As you can imagine, it can be reasonably easy for someone with good intentions to go afoul of the law and end up facing criminal charges. In these cases, anyone accused of participating should contact a Point Loma criminal attorney before speaking with the police or prosecutors about their actions.
Unfortunately, outside of the boundaries set up by the right-to-die law, it is still illegal to aid, advise or encourage a suicide in California. In fact, these crimes are felonies punishable by up to three years imprisonment if the patient did die and half of that time if the attempt was unsuccessful. In defending their actions, many people facing these accusations will try to explain their behavior -providing evidence to the prosecution. This is why it is critical you remain silent until you discuss the case with a criminal lawyer in Mission Valley.
If you have been accused of any charge related to assisting someone to commit suicide, please call (760) 643-4050 or (858) 486-3024 to schedule a free initial consultation with top Normal Heights criminal defense attorney Peter M. Liss.
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