Washington vs. Glucksberg
Case Synopsis
Washington v. Glucksberg was a case upon which the United States Supreme Court came to the unanimous decision that the right to assist patients commits suicide was not protected by the Due Process Clause. To begin with, Dr. Glucksberg, a medical practitioner with the assistance of a non-profit organization challenged the ban by Washington state against assisted suicide in the Natural Death Act of 1979. The main argument was that assisted suicide was a right interest safeguarded by the Due Process Act present in the fourteenth amendment of the constitution. Furthermore, the district court made a ruling in favor of Dr. Glucksberg which was later over turned by the United States Court of Appeal after rehearing the case. Nevertheless, the ninth circuit reversed the decision made by the previous court and affirmed the ruling made by the district court. The chief question raised during the arguing of the case was whether the protection of the previously mentioned clause encompassed the right to commit …show more content…
The ruling was also meant to prevent suicides that arose from psychological and financial problems. Moreover, the court held the feeling that in the instance that physician- assisted suicides were made legal, they would proceed down the path of legitimizing intended and possibly involuntary euthanasia. Judge O’Connor concurred with the prevailing argument. Additionally, Justices Stevens, Ginsburg and Brayer wrote opinions that concurred with the decision of the court. Nevertheless, in the year 2008, voters in Washington state passed the Washington Death with Dignity Act which put in place measures that dictated conditions for physician-assisted