DREDF Files Amicus Brief on Behalf of Itself and Eighteen Other Organizations Opposing Efforts to Establish a Constitutional Right to Assisted Suicide in Massachusetts

February 27, 2022
The question of whether a constitutional right to assisted suicide exists must be addressed and understood from the perspective of the class of people who will be most adversely impacted if such a right is found – people with disabilities, whether terminally ill or not. On February 14, 2022, DREDF filed an amicus brief on behalf of itself and eighteen other organizations in Kligler v. Healy to provide such a perspective. Kligler is an appeal before the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts that seeks to establish a constitutional right to assisted suicide. The nineteen amici are recognized authorities in the field of disability rights who oppose the legalization of assisted suicide. The brief of amici discusses how assisted suicide discriminates against people with disabilities, degrades their perceived value and worth, and puts them at higher risk of discrimination and abuse. […], February 27, 2022
The question of whether a constitutional right to assisted suicide exists must be addressed and understood from the perspective of the class of people who will be most adversely impacted if such a right is found – people with disabilities, whether terminally ill or not. On February 14, 2022, DREDF filed an amicus brief on behalf of itself and eighteen other organizations in Kligler v. Healy to provide such a perspective. Kligler is an appeal before the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts that seeks to establish a constitutional right to assisted suicide. The nineteen amici are recognized authorities in the field of disability rights who oppose the legalization of assisted suicide. The brief of amici discusses how assisted suicide discriminates against people with disabilities, degrades their perceived value and worth, and puts them at higher risk of discrimination and abuse. […],