Switzerland: they carry out the first euthanasia of a prisoner

The detainee committed suicide for the first time in Switzerland with the assistance of a humanitarian organization suicideaccording to a report to be published on Thursday in the newspaper Wochenzeitung.

The man, whose identity was not disclosed, died on February 28 along with the Exit organization. According to the report, he was held in the Bostadel prison, not far from Zurich.

Exit interrogated AFPindicated that “due to data protection and identity” he found it impossible to provide information on the case.

Cantonal Justice Department Zurich confirmed to the Swiss agency SAR that the euthanasia was carried out as part of the execution of sentences, but without providing other details.

The judiciary recalled that in Switzerland any person with discernment could choose the manner and time of his death and that this right also extended to detainees.

The law establishes that “only one who, “driven by mercenary motives,” assists someone’s suicide, is condemned.

However, the practice of euthanasia is regulated by codes of medical ethics and organizations such as Exit, which have their own restrictions (age, illness) that are more stringent than the penal code.

He suicide This is usually done at the person’s or a relative’s home. In some cantons, it can also be practiced in nursing or medical homes, and in some hospitals.

public inquiry

In 2018, the prisoner was interned for life, Peter Vogtasked in a television report to receive help from Exit to die, which caused a heated debate in the country.

Vogt, a recidivist rapist, served his sentence years ago but remains hospitalized for the rest of his life, according to a sweeping Swiss penal code measure approved in a referendum in 2004, as he is considered extremely dangerous due to his mental disorder.

“It is more humane to want to kill yourself than to be buried alive for many years,” he wrote at the time. Peter Vogt To AFPadding that he suffered from various ailments such as kidney and heart failure.

The authorities sought the opinion of the Swiss Competence Center for the Execution of Criminal Sentences (CSCSP), which replied that assisted suicide in prisons should be possible under certain conditions in accordance with the “right to self-determination” of the individual. (AFP)