X-Message-Number: 5928
Date: Wed, 13 Mar 1996 15:29:44 -0700 (MST)
From:  (David Brandt-Erichsen)
Subject: Oregon Measure 16

The request to the Ninth Circuit Court for an emergency ruling to lift the
injunction against Oregon Measure 16 has been denied and referred back to
the judge who originally placed the injunction, District Judge Michael
Hogan.  If Hogan refuses to lift the injunction in light of the Ninth
Circuit decision which stated that he erred in his ruling, then Oregon
Measure 16 will not become effective for several months at least.  Although
it is clear that the Ninth Circuit would hold Measure 16 to be
constitutional, there is as yet no hearing date for the case to be heard
before the Ninth Circuit.  And  decisions are not usually released for
several months after a hearing.

This ironically puts the state of Oregon in the same situation as the other
states within the Ninth Circuit:  currently, physician-assisted suicide is
legal for competent terminally ill adults, but there is no legal framework
or regulation to carry the process out.  Lawyers are recommending that any
persons who wish to exercise their rights under the Ninth Circuit ruling
should follow the guidelines in Measure 16 to avoid accusations that
adequate safeguards were not followed.  Although it would be legal, trying
to combine a cryonics standby with a physician-assisted suicide in such an
uncertain legal environment would be a very risky endeavor.

 (David Brandt-Erichsen)


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