Monday 20 October 2008

Suicide - helpers may face charges

The parents of the former rugby player who helped him get to the Digitas group may have to face charges after the case has been referred to the CPS.

The case of a rugby player who died in a Swiss assisted suicide clinic is to be referred to the complex case unit of the Crown Prosecution Service.

Daniel James, 23, from Worcester, was paralysed when he suffered a collapsed spine in a training session at Nuneaton Rugby Club, Warwickshire in 2007.
Police are investigating after he died in Switzerland on 12 September.
Lawyers are to decide if anyone should face charges over Mr James's death. A man and a woman have been interviewed.


This was almost inevitable after a woman petitioned the legal authorities for a definitive statement as to what would happen to her husband if he assisted her on a similar journey. There had been other cases where husbands assisted and no action was taken. The request for confirmation of what could be done only awakened sleeping dogs who should have been left to lie.

I am sure that if I were to be involved in such a predicament, the law would take a back seat and be none of my considerations. The thing to hope for is that CPS will dump this referral; the stress of being questioned as to their final journey with their son would be unbearable.

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