Category Archives: crime and punishment

Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN), Disability Community Statement on Sentencing of Kelli Stapleton

abuse, ASAN, autism, Autistic Self-Advocacy Network, court cases, crime and punishment, media issues, Our News & Commentary Blog, , , , ,

On October 7th, Kelli Stapleton will be sentenced for First Degree Child Abuse in a Michigan courtroom.  The following is a summary of the facts written by attorney Samantha Crane regarding Kelli Stapleton’s attempt to kill her autistic daughter and the aftermath in the media and public discourse.  It provides the background and context for … Continue reading Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN), Disability Community Statement on Sentencing of Kelli Stapleton →

Brazilian Authorities Arrest Doctor and Seven Other Health Care Professionals on Charges of Killing Patients

Brazil, crime and punishment, medical killings, murder, Our News & Commentary Blog, serial killers

Thanks to Joe Stramondo, who found this article and alerted me to it.  (Joe is a PhD candidate in the Department of Philosophy at Michigan State University where he is specializing in bioethics, disability studies, and moral psychology. He has presented at meetings of the Society for Disability Studies, the American Society for Bioethics and … Continue reading Brazilian Authorities Arrest Doctor and Seven Other Health Care Professionals on Charges of Killing Patients →

Minnesota: Some Charges Against Final Exit Members Thrown Out, Two Defendants and Serious Charges Remain

courts, crime and punishment, final exit network, Frontline, Jerry Dincin, lawrence egbert, Minnesota, Our News & Commentary Blog

It’s been awhile since we’ve written about the Final Exit Network (FEN), but there are new developments in the criminal case against members of the group.  You can read earlier posts on the case in Minnesota here, here, here and here. Here’s an excerpt from a summary on NPR on the Frontline site (Frontline producers … Continue reading Minnesota: Some Charges Against Final Exit Members Thrown Out, Two Defendants and Serious Charges Remain →

Minnesota: Grand Jury Issues 17-Count Indictment Against 4 Final Exit Network Members

assisted suicide, crime and punishment, final exit network, indictments, Jerry Dincin, lawrence egbert, Minnesota, Our News & Commentary Blog, reality check

From the Baltimore Sun: HASTINGS, Minn. — A Minnesota grand jury has indicted a national right-to-die group and several members for their actions in the 2007 suicide of a suburban Minneapolis woman, prosecutors announced Monday. The 17-count indictment charges the medical director of Final Exit Network, Lawrence Egbert of Baltimore, and three other officials with … Continue reading Minnesota: Grand Jury Issues 17-Count Indictment Against 4 Final Exit Network Members →

Kentucky: Man Charged with Murder of Wife While Friends Suggest it Was a “Mercy Killing”

animal cruelty, crime and punishment, Homicide / 'Mercy Killing', media coverage, murder, Our News & Commentary Blog, pets

This is a story that has been developing over the past few days and it has more than a few twists.  Here’s one of the most comprehensive news stories on the case from Wave3 News in Louisville, KY: ELIZABETHTOWN, KY (WAVE) – Was it assisted suicide or cold blooded murder? That’s the question Michele Daugherty’s friends have … Continue reading Kentucky: Man Charged with Murder of Wife While Friends Suggest it Was a “Mercy Killing” →