Life is precious at all Stages
Man Who Shot Pro-Life Advocate James Pouillon Now Declared Mentally Competent For Trial Owosso, MI (LifeNews.com) -- The man who allegedly shot and killed pro-life advocate James Pouillon and a local businessman has now been declared mentally competent to stand trial. Local resident Harlan Drake stands accused of shooting Pouillon as he protested abortion outside a high school and he had been declared mentally incompetent to stand trial last month. Now, a judge this week has accepted the latest report saying his mental health has improved after getting treatment. Drake's competency means he understands the charges and can assist his defense. His lawyer, Robert Ashley, still might pursue an insanity defense if the case goes to trial. Ashley is seeking approval for a separate evaluation of Drake's mental health at the time of the shootings of Pouillon and Mike Fuoss. District Court Judge Terrance P. Dignan signed an order last month remanding the 33-year-old to the State Department of Mental Health for treatment, though Judge Dignan said there was a good possibility that treatment would make it so Drake will attain competence enough to be tried for the September 11 shootings. He said Drake's suicide attempt two days after the shooting was a factor along with a 2004 crash Drake was involved in that resulted in the death of two teenagers which saw them fail to yield to his truck. Drake was scheduled to receive receive treatment at the Center for Forensic Psychiatry for a maximum of 15 months, and the first trial on the charges had been postponed until then. Shiawassee County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Sara Edwards indicated the case will move forward as soon as Drake is ready to stand trial and explained that the mental facility is a secure facility.
Canadian Poll Shows Concerns of Hurting Disabled by Legalizing Assisted Suicide Ottawa, Canada (LifeNews.com) -- A new poll conducted by the polling firm Environics for a Canadian pro-life group shows residents of Canada support legalizing assisted suicide, but do so with considerable reservations. The poll finds 61% said they favored legalization if a patient consents but large majorities also have concerns. Support for assisted suicide included 75% of Quebecers but that support drops to 56% in Ontario, 52% in Atlantic Canada and 51% in Saskatchewan. However, the poll also found 70% of Canadians worried that if legalization occurs, sick, disabled, or elderly persons would be euthanized without their consent. In addition, 56% were concerned that elderly persons would be pressured to accept euthanasia due to rising health care costs. “Outside of Quebec support drops dramatically and is tempered by
fears about how vulnerable groups will be affected,” says Delores Doherty of LifeCanada, the pro-life group that commissioned the survey. “The idea that Canadians are clamoring for euthanasia is not accurate, despite the impression that may have been left from some polls.”
British Parents Battle at High Court Over Disabled Boy, May be Denied Treatment London, England (LifeNews.com) -- Parents in Britain are battling at the nation's high court in the case of Baby RB, a disabled boy whose father is opposing attempts by a hospital trust to deny him life-sustaining treatment. The trust argues that Baby RB's quality of life is so low due to congenital myasthenic syndrome (CMS) that it is not in his best interests to stay alive. The mother in the case is defending her decision in court to supporting the doctors' recommendation to terminate the one-year-old baby's life support. The boy has CMS, a condition that severely limits limb movement and the ability to breathe independently and he has been hospitalized since birth. His father, who is separated from the boy's mother, opposes taking his life by removing the life support. The hospital trust which provides his care has taken the case to the High Court and, if the lawsuit is successful, it could be the first in which a hospital is allowed to remove life support over a parent's objections for someone who is not brain damaged.
"When we consider that women are treated as property, it is degrading to women that we should treat our children as property to be disposed of as we see fit." - Elizabeth Cady Stanton in a letter to Julia Ward Howe, October 16, 1873. Recorded in Howe's diary at Harvard University Library.
"Abortion is the ultimate exploitation of women."
-Alice Paul is the author of the original Equal Rights Amendment (1923
