Murderer Allowed Euthanasia Rather Than Prison

Image courtesy of The National Post

Frank Van Den Bleeken is a 50-year-old Belgian serving life in prison for sexual assault and murder. He has successfully argued that he is living a life of  unbearable psychological suffering and has been granted the right to die under Belgium’s liberal euthanasia laws. At least 15 other inmates are considering making requests as a result.

Since 2002, the people of Belgium can ask doctors to end their lives if a panel of medical experts agree that their physical or mental suffering is, "unbearable and irreversible".

Ven Den Bleeken has argued that he would never be able to overcome his violent impulses and as a result would spend his life in prison, “I’m a danger to society... What am I supposed to do? What’s the point in sitting here until the end of time and rotting away? I’d rather be euthanised.”

He asked to end his life three years ago. The board that assesses each case said he had to seek psychological help first but after he failed to find such treatment, his request was granted on Monday.

Do you think this is an acceptable use of euthanasia laws? Is this similar to allowing capital punishment? Is this an easy way out of his jail sentence? Is this a result of the 'slippery slope' of euthanasia opposition talk abut?

Read more:  <here>

Good Riddance or Cowardly?

On Tuesday, Ariel Castro, the man who kept women captive at his home in Cleveland, Ohio, has died after being found hanging in his cell.

He had been sentenced on to life imprisonment without parole plus 1,000 years on 1 August 2013.

The prosecutor who had tried him responded by calling him a "coward" unable to withstand "a small portion" of what he had inflicted on the women he had raped and kept captive for 10 years.

Reports suggest he used his bedsheets to hang himself and was discovered during a routine 30 check. Doctors were unable to resuscitate him.

Such a long sentence, in a country where the death penalty is still legal and used, was always going to be controversial. This comment from Facebook makes it clear:

It is indeed costly to keep someone in prison for their whole lives. However in this case where Castro kept young women as captives, it was a small dose of revenge in the eyes of many.

In the UK, killers such as Harold Shipman and Fred West have committed suicide rather than live out their life sentences. Both cases caused controversy with one group saying good riddance, while others claiming that prisons should do more to prevent such criminals gaining and 'easy way out' from their punishment.

Do you think suicide is an 'easy way out'? Is it a sign of absolute remorse? Do you think it is better or worse for the victims? Do you think prisons need to do more to prevent suicides?

Read more:Here
Papers Divided After Shipman Suicide

Sawn Tyson: failing to realise the sanctity of life

Shawn Tyson has just been found guilty of the double murder two British young men, James Cooper, 25, from Warwickshire, and James Kouzaris, 24, from Northampton.

After the trial, just before he was take down to the cells, two of the mens' friends had an opportunity to speak: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17544660 

Do you think that these speeches capture something of the reality of the sanctity of life? Do you think two life sentences is sufficient punishment for Tyson? How do you think he felt during these speeches?