On October 24th 1993 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Robert Latimer was convicted of second degree murder for the intentional killing of his 12 year-old daughter, Tracy Latimer, who suffered a severe form of cerebral palsy since she was born. Tracy endured seizures five to six times a day, could not take pain medication because it would interfere with her epilepsy medication, and underwent painful surgeries throughout her life to stabilize her body weight and correct spinal abnormalities. Just weeks before her death, her doctors planned to surgically remove her hipbone, which had become dysfunctional as a result of a previous surgery and spinal complication, and would have taken at least a year of recovery and been extremely painful. Her father, …show more content…
According to Emile Durkheim, the inconsistent legal and social norms regarding the killing of someone in insurmountable pain has given birth to anomies, which refers to a “lack of social regulation in which the unrestricted appetites of the individual conscience are no longer held in check…” (White and Haines2004). While Latimer’s direct motives for killing his daughter revolved around her pain, short life expectancy, and limited sources of joy in life, and horrific surgeries, the lack of a collective moral direction towards euthanasia served to legitimize Latimer’s act against the criminal code, in that his plan was well thought out over a long period of time and enabled him to feel wholly confident and unremorseful about this criminalized act. For instance, Latimer planned days in advance to euthanize Tracy while the rest of his family was at church, following which he had to wait an hour in his garage for the carbon monoxide poisoning to fully work, actions which indicate “his lack of remorse…the significant degree of planning and T’s extreme vulnerability” (Supreme Court Judgements 2001). Durkheim’s theory of sociological positivism plays a very big role in Latimer’s crime, as the legal …show more content…
According to Sally Howard, a Professor at Lethbridge University, Judge Nobel (the first trial judge), demonstrates how judgements dealing with illegal acts against imperfect or deficient bodies can be relabeled as positive and enforce narrow views of what it means to be disabled. In his findings, the judge repeatedly defined Robert Latimer’s actions as a “compassionate homicide” and a “mercy killing”, simultaneously associating words bound for heroes and leaders with the action of life-taking, and this is directly related to the way Latimer described his daughter in trial and the single image of disabled people the court held. Tracy was painted as disfigured, in constant pain, and bedridden (unproductive), and this single story feeds and finds legitimacy in the stereotype that physically and mentally disabled peoples are “basically or nearly dead”, which according to Howard is reminiscent of biological positivism, in that the disabled are a sect of society labeled inferior and unnecessary because of physical abnormalities. It was for this reason that Judge Nobel felt
Lee Lor was a fifteen year old Hmong girl. She was diagnosed with an acute appendicitis. During the operation to remove her appendix, doctors discovered an eight inch cancerous tumor in abdomen. Without consent they removed the tumor which cost Lee an ovary and part of fallopian tube. The doctors told her parents after the procedure what had happened and promised that she was still fertile and able to still have children. The Hmong people do not accept the western world tradition and science. They hold on strongly to their ancient traditions, are animist, and very spiritual. When the parents were made aware of the extra procedure taken place they did not trust the doctors and refused Lee further treatment including chemotherapy.
On July 15th, 2008, Caylee Anthony was reported missing by her grandmother Cindy Anthony. Cindy Anthony in the report stated that she hadn’t seen her grand-daughter Caylee for a month and that she and her husband were suspicious because their daughter Casey’s car reeked of decay, as if a dead body had been stored inside the vehicle for days. Caylee and her mother resided with Casey Anthony’s parents. However, Cindy Anthony claimed that Casey had given different explanations about Caylee's whereabouts before telling Cindy that she hadn’t seen her own daughter for several weeks. When questioned by authorities, Casey told the detectives several lies: stating the child had been kidnapped by her nanny on June 9, and that Casey had been trying to contact the nanny to find her daughter. Preceding this information, Casey Anthony was convicted and charged with first degree murder in 2008, but pleaded not guilty ...
In Durkheim’s concept of social/moral regulation, society imposes limits on humans to regulate their passions, desires, expectations, ambitions and roles. When these limits or social regulations break down, the controlling authority the society once had no longer functions and people are left on their own to make their own plans. In societies that have low levels of social regulations, a state of Anomie, or normlessness, can occur and affect the whole society or just some of its groups. Anomic suicide was more prevalent in this type of society. Anomic suicide basically involve...
In this essay I will be analysing the morality of voluntary active euthanasia (VAE). I will focus on the argument that if such an act is considered morally acceptable, it can only lead down a slippery slope in which society becomes grossly unrecognizable in terms of the value of life. This essay will examine the strengths and weaknesses of this argument and the moral principles which underpin it to determine whether or not it remains a convincing argument to VAE.
Justice is something that we all as human being want to see fulfill, especially when we are the one that need it for us or our love ones. The family members of those who were killed by Susan Atkins and her companion will agree with it. The damage cause to their dears and the endless pain and suffering in effect from their death will support the decision take by the parole board in September 2, 2009 in the denial of a compassionate release due to Atkins’ health.
Through all the media coverage, Sam Reese Sheppard began to have nightmares that his dad was electrocuted, and that he should be to (Quade). He has guilt that made him have the decision to not have kids because it is hard for him to hold his own life together. There has been a huge change in opinion from people who assumed Dr. Sam Sheppard was guilty. Now people see that he was unfairly convicted. This led people to believe that the death penalty should not be used. Although the case will probably never be decided, with all the evidence that has been found, Dr. Sam Sheppard should be considered innocent.
I have brought forward considerations that counter Callahan's reasoning against three types of arguments that support euthanasia: the right to self-determination, the insignificant difference between killing and letting a person die by removing their life-support, and euthanasia's good consequences outweighing the harmful consequences are all positive, relevant and valid factors in the moral evaluation of euthanasia. Callahan's objections against these reasons do not hold.
Convicted for the murders of his wife and two kids, thirty-four years ago, Dr. MacDonald still endures the agony of being accused of killing his family. Even after twenty-four years of imprisonment and several unlawful court hearings, additional documentation continues to up hold Dr. MacDonald’s testimony.
Opposing Viewpoints."Introduction to Euthanasia: Opposing Viewpoints." Euthanasia. Ed. Carrie Snyder. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2000. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 18 Nov. 2011. http://ic.galegroup.com.library.collin.edu/ic/ovic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&disableHighlighting=false&prodId=OVIC&action=2&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CEJ3010134107&userGroupName=txshracd2497&jsid=af2eacb374dfea6a89c0773d16c35a50
This tone is also used to establish an appeal to pathos which he hopes to convince the audience of the fact that handicapped people are still people and not less than anyone else. A very prominent example of Peace’s emotion is displayed when he says, “Like many disabled people, I embrace an identity that is tied to my body. I have been made to feel different, inferior, since I began using a wheelchair thirty years ago and by claiming that I am disabled and proud, I am empowered,” (para. 15). This declaration demonstrates to his audience that Peace is honored by who he is and what disabled people can do and that he is tired of being oppressed by the media. Peace also makes this claim to support his thesis in the first paragraph that states, “The negative portrayal of disabled people is not only oppressive but also confirms that nondisabled people set the terms of the debate about the meaning of disability,” (para. 1). This is Peace’s central argument for the whole article and explains his frustration with society’s generalization of handicapped people and the preconceived limitations set on them. Peace’s appeal to pathos and tone throughout are extremely effective in displaying to his audience (society) that those who have disabilities are fed up with the limits that have been placed in the
"The Death Penalty Essay." Example Essays.com - Over 100,000 essays, term papers and book reports! Web. 14 Jan. 2010. .
I believe you bring up an excellent and important point in regards to this case; how parents must feel dealing with the terminal illness and death of their child. I think that consideration is what makes understanding Robert Latimer difficult . It brings up a lot of emotion and for good reason. I understand why it invokes oppostion, but I feel assumptions are made about him that aren't fair. We don't know if he feels guilt or was relieved to have her gone. From what he says, he feels confident about his decision. So to evaulate from a Utilitarian perspective, he is certain he choose the scenario which caused his daughter less unhappiness and suffering. For me where this story is complicated, is that he didn't consider the societal perspective.
Keown, John. "1- 'Voluntary Euthanasia'" Euthanasia, Ethics, and Public Policy: An Argument against Legalisation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 2002. 10. Print.
Munns, Craig A. "The Morality of Euthanasia" Class lecture, Critical Thinking and Ethics, Miami-Dade College, Miami, Florida, January 30, 2014.
In the essay “Disability,” Nancy Mairs discusses the lack of media attention for the disabled, writing: “To depict disabled people in the ordinary activities of life is to admit that there is something ordinary about disability itself, that it may enter anyone’s life.” An ordinary person has very little exposure to the disabled, and therefore can only draw conclusions from what is seen in the media. As soon as people can picture the disabled as regular people with a debilitating condition, they can begin to respect them and see to their needs without it seeming like an afterthought or a burden. As Mairs wrote: “The fact is that ours is the only minority you can join involuntarily, without warning, at any time.” Looking at the issue from this angle, it is easy to see that many disabled people were ordinary people prior to some sort of accident. Mairs develops this po...