THE LAW

Helping someone to end their life is a criminal offence, and in England and Wales carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison under the Suicide Act 1961. In Northern Ireland, it is also banned under the Criminal Justice Act 1966. There is no specific crime for assisted dying in Scotland, but it is possible that someone can be prosecuted for murder or culpable homicide.

The Director of Public Prosecutions will bring a case against someone accused of assisting another to die, when it is in the ‘public interest’ to do so. Since 2010, prosecutors have decided this in accordance with the DPP’s guidance on assisted dying. Similar guidance also exists in Northern Ireland, but not in Scotland. However, even if someone is not criminally prosecuted, they can still be penalised for helping another to die, by having their inheritance withheld under the Forfeiture Act 1982. 

As the law stands, the only way that someone can legally end their life with medical oversight is through the barbaric process of voluntary stopping eating and drinking, or by refusing life-saving medication. Doctors can only help ease someone’s suffering by providing pain relief, or removing medical treatment and letting them die naturally.

PROSECUTION GUIDELINES

Since 2010, prosecutors have decided whether or not to charge someone with helping another to die by following the Director of Prosecutions’ Guidelines on Assisted Dying.

WHY DO THESE GUIDELINES EXIST?

Before 2009, it was unclear when someone might be prosecuted for helping another person to die. As a result, a legal case was successfully brought against the Director of Public Prosecutions by Debbie Purdy, a former music journalist who suffered from the incurable condition multiple sclerosis. The UK’s highest court ruled that the Director of Public Prosecutions had to clarify the factors that they would consider when deciding whether to bring a criminal prosecution.  

Following Debbie Purdy’s case, the then Director of Public Prosecutions, Sir Keir Starmer, issued the current guidelines on assisted dying. They have been updated on only one occasion since then, to clarify that medical staff are, by virtue of their position, more likely to be prosecuted if they assist someone to whom they owe a duty of care.

WHAT DO THE GUIDELINES SAY?

The Director of Public Prosecutions’ Guidelines on Assisted Dying apply both to assisted deaths that occur abroad and within the UK. 

The guidelines do not state every factor which could be relevant, but broadly suggest it is less likely a prosecution would be in the ‘public interest’ if someone: 

  • Made a voluntary, clear, settled, and informed decision to end their life 
  • Was wholly motivated by compassion when helping someone else to die 
  • Provides help ‘of only minor encouragement or assistance’
  • Attempts to dissuade another person from ending their life before helping 
  • Reluctantly provides help to another person 
  • Reports to the police that they have helped someone to die, and fully assists any investigation. 

Alternatively, the guidelines also indicate that it is more likely a prosecution would be in the ‘public interest’ if someone: 

  • Helps someone aged under 18 years old 
  • Helps someone who was not of sound mind (meaning they did not have ‘mental capacity’) 
  • Helps someone without a voluntary, clear, settled, and informed decision to end their life
  • Was not wholly motivated by compassion e.g. choosing to help someone because they stand to gain in some way from their death 
  • Pressures someone or did not take steps to ensure that someone was not being pressured into ending their life 
  • Helps someone who was not physically able to end their life themselves 
  • Helps someone who was a stranger 
  • Helps someone in their capacity as a medical doctor, nurse, or other healthcare professional.

A full list of the factors can be found on the Crown Prosecutions Website.