R. vs. Latimer

The case of R. vs. Latimer involves an accused charged with first degree murder later convicted with second degree murder of his 12 year old daughter named Tracey. Tracey was not considered to be a normal child like all others; Tracey had a mind of a 4 month old baby who was quadriplegic. The accused confessed of taking his daughters life by inserting a hose from his pickup truck’s exhaust pipe into the cab, where he put his daughter. This later caused the daughter dying from carbon monoxide. Raising and taking care of a disabled child may be difficult, but does it go to such extremes where you have to take the life of your loved one? I think it’s wrong to help assist suicide under any circumstances. Whether the person is suffering or not, you’re still taking the law in your hands. Suicide in general isn’t acceptable, even though everyone is responsible for themselves, people do not have the right to die.
For R. vs. Latimer case, what the court decided was the accused should be convicted of second degree murder, sentencing him life imprisonment without parole eligibility for 10 years. Although what the jury recommended was he should be eligible for parole after one year. But under the Canadian law it states anyone who is found guilty of second degree murder, requires a 10 year minimum jail sentence. Knowing that the accused daughter was disabled and was suffering, so he killed her to take her away from the pain, it was still a case of murder. The accused daughter was too young to give informed consent and there was no proof that the daughter had asked help for dying. The accused on his own decided to take his daughter’s life, whether it was for her own good or not, it’s the same as killing an ordinary person.
Even though in the case it was decided that the accused is charged with second degree murder for killing his daughter, the accused should’ve been given a sentence based on euthanasia. Euthanasia is, “the putting to death, by painless method, of a terminally-ill or severely debilitated person through the omission” (Alliance for Life Ontario, February 28 2003). This case was more based upon the accused wanting to kill his daughter since she was disabled and was suffering, so he killed her through a painless way by putting her into the car with carbon monoxide pipe. The law states euthanasia is illegal in Canada and the most relevant Criminal Code that falls under euthanasia is section 241 which states “Everyone who counsels a person to commit suicide or aids or abets a person to commit suicide, whether suicide ensues or not, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years” (Duhaime, March 1 2011). Section 241 states that the accused should be liable to imprisonment for not more than fourteen years, where as if in the case the accused is charged with second degree murder, sentencing him life time imprisonment.
What also falls under section 241 of the criminal code is assisted suicide, which could’ve applied in this case only if consent was given by the person who died. Euthanasia and assisted suicide both fall under the same criminal code and have the same sentencing but in this case it wasn’t assisted suicide at all. Assisted suicide which is also sometimes called the “aid-in-dying” basically is “the act of intentionally, knowingly and directly providing the means of death to another person so that the person can use that means to commit suicide. If the person who dies performs the last act, assisted suicide has occurred” (Alliance for Life Ontario, February 28 2003). The reason why it was considered a case of murder was the accused daughter was too young to give consent and there was nothing proving that the daughter had asked for help in dying. On top of that it is stated in section 14 of the Criminal Code that “No person is entitled to consent to have death inflicted on him, and such consent does not affect the criminal responsibility of any person by whom death may be inflicted on the person by whom consent is given” (Duhaime, March 1 2011). Section 14 states that no one has the right to give there life up, which has to be anyone assisting suicide is committing a murder.
Sometimes people think the only way to take someone out of pain from illness is by killing them, although that is no different from committing a murder. Why does it matter if the person is suffering or in a well condition because in the end you’re still taking a human’s a life? Taking someone’s life even when there suffering should be considered first degree murder since you do plan it, decide on whether you should kill the person or not, then proceeding on with the plan by killing the person. Having consent from the person wanting to suicide makes no difference, either way with or without consent you’re the one who takes the life a human.

Work Cited http://www.religioustolerance.org/euthcan.htm http://www.duhaime.org/LegalResources/CriminalLaw/LawArticle-100/Euthanasia-in-Canada.aspx
http://www.allianceforlife.org/euthanasia.html