Twelve activists accused of helping people in France to illegally obtain a euthanasia drug used for physician-assisted death in some countries were set to go on trial in Paris on Monday, September 15, as the country debates a right-to-die bill. The defendants are members of Ultime Liberté ("Ultimate Freedom"), an organization that fights to legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia in France. The trial is set to conclude on October 9.
They are accused of helping dozens of people purchase pentobarbital, a drug used for physician-assisted suicide in countries such as Belgium and Switzerland, between August 2018 and November 2020.
Many of the defendants, whose ages range from 74 to 89, are retired teachers with no criminal records. They are charged with trafficking illegal substances and face up to 10 years in prison if convicted – although any sentences are expected to be much more lenient, given mitigating factors including their age.
In France, pentobarbital is only authorized to euthanize animals, while in the United States, the drug is used to carry out executions. Few countries regulate assisted suicide, or euthanasia. In many, it is a punishable crime to help someone end their lives, even if they are suffering severe and incurable pain.
The trial, at which philosophers and doctors are expected to take the stand, is likely to draw fresh attention to the subject. "This hearing is an opportunity to raise public awareness of end-of-life issues," said Arnaud Levy-Soussan, a lawyer for most of the defendants.
Ultime Liberté's campaign goes beyond the demands of traditional pro-euthanasia associations for a right to assisted dying for patients who are terminally ill and suffer unbearable pain. The group supports the right for people to control the manner and timing of their death, whether they are terminally ill or not.
"Suicide has been decriminalized since the Revolution, but there are many laws that prevent the freedom to commit suicide, non-violent suicide," Claude Hury, head of Ultime Liberté, told Agence France-Presse. She said her group wanted to help people age peacefully and die with dignity. "Our goal is not to kill people," Hury said. "It is to help them continue to age while being very serene about the end, provided they have this magic pill at home, so they can stop when they decide to, rather than wait for the medical diktat."
The investigation began in 2019 following a US report on a network that shipped pentobarbital worldwide in liquid form, disguised in bottles labeled "natural cosmetics". Armed with a list of buyers provided by US investigators, French authorities carried out around one hundred searches across the country in October 2019. The buyers – around 30 of whom had died by the time of the probe – were mostly elderly or seriously ill people, though some suicides appeared unrelated to age or illness. The investigation found that some members of the association accompanied those wishing to die by giving them information on how to order the drug or even helping them obtain it.
The debate on assisted dying has raged in France for years. In May, the lower house of parliament approved a right-to-die bill on first reading, the initial step in a lengthy process that could grant patients medical assistance to end their lives in clearly defined circumstances. The legislation faces opposition from religious leaders and many health workers.
France's draft law would allow assisted dying only in an "advanced" stage of illness, which it defines as "entering an irreversible process characterized by a worsening health condition of the sick person that affects the quality of their lives". If approved, France would join a small group of European countries that give the right to aid in dying, including Austria, Germany, Spain and Switzerland.