Should suicide be illegal?

Question

I know that I'm probably going to get a lot of strong responses to this question. However, I really do wonder if it should be illegal. After all, it's not as if suicidal people want to hurt anyone other than themselves. Also, some may argue that suicidal people aren't thinking rationally when they decide to kill themselves. That may be true, but is it really morally right for the rest of us to impose our will upon these people and force them to do something they don't want to do (live)?

Answer 1

No. It's a deeply personal decision and act. Everyone should have the right to end their own life if they chose to do so.

Answer 2

Ok, first off how can you make it illegal? If the person kills themselves you can't punish them for it. Also, you can't punish their families and or friends for their decision (they're already going to be suffering as it is). Some suicidal people may not be thinking rationally. It depends on if there was drugs or alcohol involved and what that person was going through. Some do it because they are so messed up that they fall into a slump and just do what they think is the best thing to do at that point in time. Some do it because of being hurt so badly that they rather die than face another day. Others because their whole life is messed up because of the action of one (or more) person or thing(s) that have happened. They could also do it because they lost something or someone so close to them that they feel that they can't go on. Or they could honestly feel that they don't deserve to live and or that the world would be better without them. There are alot of things that could lead to suicide. The real question is. Why? Why did they do it? Why are they thinking about it? What can you (or we) do to help them? From my own personal experience, I have learned that one simple action can lead to life or death. The choice isn't just their's it's also ours. If we know that they are feeling this way, we could show them how much we care and try to help ease the pain that the person is feeling. Also, sometimes, you won't know that they feel this way. A simple action of smiling, holding a door open, helping them pick up something that they dropped and so forth can help that person emotionally in a way that you couldn't understand unless you personally have been suicidal. No one could ever put into words what exactly goes on inside (both mentally and emotionally). There is always hope no matter what you're going through. Things can not stay horrible forever. They may take a while to get to the better side of, but in the end you won't regret holding on. So smile, help others, and most of all honestly care.

Answer 3

Suicide is illegal. There a variety of reasons for this. The first is that it allows the people who are suicidal to be committed to psychiatric facilities against their will (if they had their will they'd be committing suicide, not talking to psychiatrists). The idea is that many suicides are impulsive and a seventy-two hour 'lock-down' may keep them safe while the impulse passes.

So suicidal people aren't punished for their crime in a traditional sense. Rather the criminal aspect allows help to be forced upon them. (Whether that is right or something the government should be able to do that is an argument for another day).

Second, suicide is considered to be a mortal sin in several Christian denominations (Catholicism being one). Back in the bad old days of legislated morality, making suicide a legal crime as well as a sin was a way of condemning it; even if there was no practical way to punish the offenders. (There is a small town - I wish I could remember the name, but I think it's in Texas - in the middle of nowhere where it is illegal to set off a nuclear or atomic weapon inside city limits. Is it likely that one will be set off in the city limits? Very much no. But the town's stance on nuclear testing is clear.)

Third is the prickly issue of assisted suicide. Suicide laws make it illegal to assist someone in committing suicide too. On the one hand, people in the end stages of a disease who have though out their options and have made their preparations should be allowed to end their lives peacefully. On the other hand, most people who attempt suicide do it on 'impulse' as a result of mental or emotional imbalance. The way the law stands now, it really discourages people from assisting with the 'impulse' type of suicide (it makes it hard to assist with the well-thought out kind too).

And while suicidal people don't *mean* to hurt other people, frequently they do. The hurt they inflict on their loved ones creates lasting scars and lifelong pain. More than that they can create physically dangerous environments in their suicide attempts. (ie: the man who parks on the train tracks can derail a passenger train)

So while it may not be right for us to impose our moral views on others, it is morally right to help the sick. A decision made in the throes of depression (about just about anything) is rarely a good one. People who are unsuccessful in their suicide attempts are (90%) of the time, glad they failed. So while we may be frustrating them in the short term by imposing our will upon them, the long term view is quite different.

This answer was a little longer than I intended it, but I hope it helps.

Answer 4

No it should not be illegal, there are those who live in great pain and whish to end thier lives. In the UK they are travelling to Switzerlans where they can get assisted suicide from a doctor. There should be very tight rules on assisted suicide but suicide shouldnt be illegal.
Those who do not request assisted suicide and try to commit suicide should however have to go through psycological assesment and help. Some people trying to comit suicide just need help but dont know where to turn and if they recieve the help they can lead a more rewarding life. Some are mentally disturbed and unfit and having failed at suicide they may try it again or due to their mental state may cause harm to others or put others in danger.
It is a strange question but suicide should not be illegal, assisting in a suicide should unless you are a doctor with a patient that has an approval for assisted suicide. Anybody who attempts suicide and fails must be refered to a psychiatrist and further assistance given.

Answer 5

People who commit suicide should face the death penalty. The problem is enforcing it. After all, once someone is dead how can you execute them?

If they are still alive and do not want to live then they should be able to settle up their affairs, pay a hefty suicide tax, and enroll in a government operated suiciditorium where they can be hooked up to a machine that will permit them to pull their own lever to bring about their own end by any number of selected means. This would save the trouble of scraping the mess up off the sidewalks from jumpers who leap out of high windows and also save the expense of sending scuba divers into murky waters in the middle of winter to look for the body of someone who decided to heave themselves off a bridge.

Suicide could be a big business, complete with stock offerings, investment opportunities, and run along the lines of Planned Parenthood. You'd see ads in the paper like this:

"Can't pay your bills? Medical problems or health issues? Depressed and can't take it any more? Call today for your Suicide-by-Mail kit, and we'll rush you all the information you need to know about ending it all. Satisfaction guaranteed."

Answer 6

Well, as everyone else already pointed out, the person you would punish would be dead. Unfortunately, the people who truly do get punished are the people the suicide victim leaves behind. It is a truly selfish act. Get help.
And, in a way, suicide is punished, because any insurance coverage the person had is nullified because it was not an accidental or natural death.

The only way this is ok (and this is my opinion only) is when the person has a terminal physical illness and they will suffer horribly while remaining alive. Agree or disagree, everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

Answer 7

Illegal suicide is a rediculous concept from the beginning. What are they going to do? Arrest your corpse and throw it in jail. Drag your coffin to court? Would Hebious (sp) Corpus apply?

"...but is it really morally right for the rest of us to impose our will upon these people and force them to do something they don't want to do (live)?"
You've hit the nail on the head and the same applies for all laws that would force people to do or not do things that only they would suffer (or not) from.
The government has no business legislating morality. In fact they have no business making anything illegal that hurts only the person doing it.

Answer 8

Believe it or not, suicide is already illegal. But disagree if you like, if these people really knew Jesus as their personal Savior, they wouldn't want to commit suicide to begin with. They really would know that there life has a purpose and that they are truly loved by Him.

There is "only" one way to find out: Get yourself a King James Bible and read it starting from John 1:1... What do you have to lose?...

Answer 9

You cannot forbid a person to commit suicide. If the person dies, it doesn't matter if it is illegal or not, and if the person lives you can put him/her in jail, but this doesn't give you the certainty that that person won't try to commit suicide again, and the situation could go on and on until that person ends up dead. This is a personal matter that the person in question must find an answer to himself/herself. Then and only then the decision to live on might occur and that person could stop having suicidal thoughts. In other words, the question is a little bit silly (no offense).

Answer 10

i thought it was, in a way? when my ex tried to kill himself i called 911 & the cops came & took him away to the mental hospital. if he hadn't agreed to go, they would have forced him. he was required to stay until the psychiatrist released him. and he, of course, had to pay the medical bills. personally, i don't want to deal with someone trying to kill themselves around me, so why not impose "my will" on them and prevent it? isn't it "morally wrong" for them to put people through that? some of them do it to punish those around them, so they ARE hurting more than just themselves. and what about the person who has to find their body--what about THEIR rights. suicide is often a selfish choice, not just irrational.
the only suicide i support is when someone is terminally ill and in great pain.

Answer 11

It isn't that suicide is illegal, but if someone tries to commit suicide they are sent to a loony bin because they are deemed mentally incompetent of making any sort of rational decision, and will probably spend a better part of their life in the hospital. I feel that in some cases, assisted suicide should be legal...for example, people in vegetative states who never will lay in bed for the rest of their life never able to do anything for themselves. I feel that if someone gives the go ahead it should be legal. It is their life, not anyone else's. Life is never bad enough where you have to commit suicide though. There is always someone out there who has it much worse than you do, and no one...NO ONE is worth losing your life over like that. Things get worse before they get better.