Assisted suicide for those who have been “plunged into an endless night”. Remarks on the heels of the Dj Fabo Case

The article aims to expound upon the Italian case of Marco Cappato, who was charged with the crime of assisting the suicide of Fabio Antoniani, known as Dj Fabo, by driving him to a Swiss clinic in order for the latter to commit suicide by self-administration of a lethal drug. Antoniani had asked Cappato for help in fulfilling his suicidal purpose, after being left tetraplegic and blind following a road accident. By its ordinance n. 207, which was issued on 16' November 2018, the Italian Constitutional Court has determined that the criminalization of assisted suicide is unconstitutional in cases where the patient a) suffers from an incurable disease that causes unbearable, unremitting physical or psychological suffering, b) is being kept alive by means of life-sustaining treatments and c) freely and lucidly expresses the wish to be helped to end his or her own life. Consequently, the Constitutional Court has urged the Italian Parliament to enact a new piece of legislation for the ultimate purpose of regulating access to assisted suicide in conformity with the above-mentioned set of criteria. The article's author shares the view that it is the Parliament's duty, rather than the judiciary's, to regulate such ethically charged issues. The Constitutional Court ruling fails to properly take into account the fact that patients often demand to end their lives because they feel helpless and unsupported, either materially or emotionally. In those instances, the choice to resort to assisted suicide is often not really as free as it may seem: It is likely to be induced by the lack of assistance and support. It is therefore essential to put in place effective reforms designed to guarantee adequate levels of assistance nationwide for those who have been stricken by such catastrophic diseases.