Decriminalize Assisted Suicide in Virginia

In the United States there are currently only two states that have legalized Physician Assisted Suicide- Washington and Oregon. In Virginia, assisting in the suicide of another person, regardless of your intentions, is a punishable offense. This should not be.

Here are a few things that everyone should understand about the subject:
First, assisted suicide is not murder. Murder is the unlawful killing of another human being without justification or excuse. Assisted Suicide is the act of ending the life of a hopelessly sick or injured individual in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy.

Second, there are very strict regulations set in place when physician assisted suicide is legalized. According to the Oregon law, these include consent from the patient, a fifteen-day waiting period, and a prognosis of six months or less.

Third, assisted suicide does not interfere with the natural process of death any more than treatment would, especially in terminal patients. Much like life support prolongs an ending life, assisted suicide simply shortens it, sparing the patient from an excruciating end.

Finally, it should be understood that it is the patient, not the doctor, that ends his or her life.

Keeping all of this in mind, I urge you to sign this petition, changing the laws that are currently in place in the state of Virginia and decriminalizing the act of assisted suicide. As human beings we have a right to live and die peacefully and with dignity, and that should not be a punishable offense.