If someone you care about bought FinaZElxit, you must buy them D~lyComl,assiOn. Derek : The There. You got what you wanted. Ever since I was diagnosed as having cancer, you have done Death of everything conceivable to pre- cipitate my death. I was not alone in recognizing what you were doing. What you Hulll~hrvA did--desertion and abandonment Ann and subsequent harrassment of a dying woman--is so unspeakble there are no words to describe -1 the horror of it. and the Yet you know. And others know too. You will have to live with this untiol you die. Truth About, 1 May you never, ever forget. Euthanasia This is the actual suicide letter left by Ann Humphry. The hand- written note was added by Ann to a copy sent to Rita Marker, author of this book. The letter itself was addressed to Ann's husband, Derek Humphry, co-founder of the Hemlock Society and author of the number-one best-seller Rnal Exit. - '1 MAR 1 t RITA MARKER ISBN 0-688-12223-3 8 ,'\- IF " ISBN 0-688-12221-3 FPT $18.00 wtinuedfiomfiotatjap) ,, Tack Kevorkian. who has written article advocating medical experiments on death row prisoners -while they are still alive. An( she explains the ramifications of euthanasia course is not the same as giving in a country without adequate health insur- doctors the right to kill ance, like America, where people who really their patients on demand. want to live might choose death rather than bankrupt their families. Deadly Compassion is essential reading for anyone who has misgivings about giving DEADLY COMPASSION doctors the right to kill. It is also the story of The Death of Ann Humphry and the the senseless death of a sensitive woman who Truth About Euthanasia discovered that her life's work was a dreadful mistake-and who believed that the man she Rita Marker loved wanted her dead. Ann Humphry's suicide in 1991 made head- lines worldwide. One of the reasons her death was so compelling was her allegation, in her suicide note, that she was driven to kill herself by her husband, Derek Humphry, co- founder of the Hemlock Society and author of the number-one best-seller Final Exit. In Deadly Cmnpasion, Rita Marker relates the explosive details of this tragic death and the dark side of the euthanasia movement. Combining the shocking, true-life story of Ann's despair and suicide with compelling arguments against ever allowing the legaliza- tion of euthanasia, Rita Marker has written a book that is disturbing, moving, and thor- oughly convincing. Rita Marker tells Ann's account of her life with Derek Humphry: from their happy times together co-founding the Hemlock Society to his leaving her afier she was diag- nosed with cancer. Here is the story of Ann's terrible gudt after she and Derek helped her parents kill themselves -with Ann smother- ing her mother to death with a laundry bag News. when the pills didn't work-and her belief USA Today and the Detroit She is an that Derek would allow her no grief and no adjunct professor in political science and remorse. And here, too, is the story of a ethics at the University of Steubenville, in remarkable friendship. When Ann felt alone Steubenville, Ohio. and abandoned, she turned to Rita Marker -having known Rita only as her most Jacket kn&n by Judith Kazdym Lee& vocal opponent on the subject of legalizing Frontjacketphoto~yc~phby Donald D. Ryan euthanasia. In Deadly Compassion, Rita Marker also William Morrow &Company, Inc. explores all of the issues surrounding eutha- 1350 Avenue of the Americas nasia-and some of the most famous right- New York, N.Y. 10019 to-die cases. She discusses in depth the career (continued on backfEap) Printed in U.S.A. .. --7 - -. -- !- - The IDeath of Ann Hmph- 1 A l wL2 II and the 1 ; Truth About Euthanasia A RITA MARKER, I~ ,. If someone you care about bought Fiwl Exit, you must buy them Deadly Compmsion. Derek : There. You got what you wanted. Ever since I wae diagnosed ae having cancer, you have done everything conceivable to pre- cipitate my death. I was not alone in recognizing what you were doing. What you did--desertion and abandonment and subsequent harrassment of a dying woman--is so unspeakble there are no words to describe the horror of it. Yet you know. And others know too. You will have to live with this untiol you die. May you never, ever forget. husband, Derek Humphry, co-founder of the Hemlock Society and author of the number-one best-sellerPiwl Exit. ,,' ISBN 0-bad-12221-3 DEADLY COMPASSION THE DEATH OF ANN HUMPHRY AND THE TRUTH ABOUT EUTHANASIA Rita Marker William Morrow and Company, Inc. New York For Paul, Tom, Jennij-er, Cheryl, and Little M and M-with the hope that the world they inherit will be one in which those who are sick, old, or dependent are cared for, not killed Copyright O 1993 by Rita Marker All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic of mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the Publisher. Inquiries should be addressed to Permissions Department, William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1350 Avenue of the Americas, New York, N.Y. 10019. It is the policy of William Morrow and Company, Inc., and its imprints and affiliates, recognizing the importance of preserving what has been written, to print the books we publish on acid-free paper, and we exert our best efforts to that end. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Marker, Rita. Deadly compassion : the death of Ann Humphry and the truth about euthanasia 1 Rita Marker. p. cm. ISBN 0-688-1222 1-3 1. Humphry, Ann, d. 1991-Death and burial. 2. Hemlock (Society) 3. Euthanasia. 4. Assisted suicide. I. Title. R726.M317 1993 179l.7-dc20 92-39736 CIP Printed in the United States of America First Edition BOOK DESIGN BY RHEA BRAUNSTEIN PREFACE lthough euthanasia has become one of today's most Avolatile and hotly debated topics, many people have no idea what it is. The typical discussion of euthanasia, couched in the language of choice and individual rights, gives the impression that a person's right to be free of painful and unwanted medical intervention is at issue. This perception, coupled with euphemisms like the "right to die," "death with dignity," and, more recently, "aid-in- dying," has led to a mistaken belief that euthanasia allows the natural process of dying to take its course. Nothing could be further from reality. Euthanasia is making people die, rather than letting them die. It is giving a cancer patient a lethal injection, for example, actually to cause death, as opposed to stopping chemotherapy and allowing that patient to die. Put bluntly, euthanasia means killing in the name of compassion. Neither law nor medical ethics requires that "everything PREFACE PREFACE be done" to "keep a person alive." To force someone to use remember. When he died at an early age, he had diabetes, heart trouble, and Parkinson's disease, and the struggle to every means technologically available to postpone death is pay for medical care had led to my parents' losing their not only against current law and practice but also cruel and inhumane. The current debate over euthanasia centers home. If euthanasia had been legal, I believe he would on whether the law and medical ethics will permit-and have felt intense societal pressure to "choose" an even ear- eventually promote-giving that lethal injection or using lier death. some other means to bring about death. The right being In addition, years of involvement in human rights activi- considered is not the right to die; it is the right to kill. ties have made me aware of the bias that exists against In the fall of 1984 I attended a right-to-die conference people with disabilities. I have seen how easily they come for the first time. At that conference I discovered that the to be viewed as dispensable because they are perceived by mental image I had of euthanasia advocates was totally some people as somehow less than human. erroneous. Previously I'd assumed that anyone working And I believe we today have reached a crossroad where, for euthanasia would be crass and unfeeling. But in the as individuals and as a society, we will soon be determining years during which I have become deeply involved in writ- the direction we will take for years to come. One road will ing about and debating euthanasia, I've met very few peo- lead to death on demand. The other, appearing steeper ple who are unpleasant or disagreeable. Even now, when and more difficult, will take us to the realization that when I go to right-to-die conferences and am known as an oppo- we cannot cure, we must continue to care for and never kill. nent, I seldom experience overt hostility. Euthanasia activ- ists are-with rare exception-warm, committed, sincere, I've written this book to share information and insights well-meaning, and courteous people. about euthanasia that I've obtained over the years and But their sincerity and good intentions do not automati- to carry out the wish of my friend Ann Humphry. The cally make what they are promoting beneficial or good. cofounder of the Hemlock Society, perhaps the best- When we examine a topic as important as the ending of known euthanasia advocacy group in the country, Ann blazed a trail, fulfilling the words she had chosen for her a human being's life, it is critical-indeed, it is a matter of high school yearbook in 1959.