Canadian adults in grievous, unending pain have a right to end their life with a doctor\u2019s help, the Supreme Court ruled on Friday.<\/p>\n
The unanimous ruling, by establishing that the \u201csanctity of life\u201d\u009d also includes the \u201cpassage into death,\u201d\u009d extends constitutional rights into a new realm. The courts have used the 1982 Charter of Rights to establish gay marriage and to strike down a federal abortion law. The new ruling will change the way some Canadians are permitted to die.<\/p>\n
In a brief, powerful opening paragraph, the court explained why it was creating a new constitutional right to autonomy over one\u2019s death in some circumstances: Those who are severely and irremediably suffering, whether physically or psychologically, \u201cmay be condemned to a life of severe and intolerable suffering\u201d\u009d by the government\u2019s absolute ban on assisted dying. \u201cA person facing this prospect has two options: she can take her own life prematurely, often by violent or dangerous means, or she can suffer until she dies from natural causes. The choice is cruel.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n