German “Mercy” Killing Appeal

24 October 2008 – Kassel, Germany What makes a homicide a “Mercy” Killing? Is it because the victim wants to end his or her life and die to end some sort of suffering, or is it simply because the victim has a significant disability? This is an important distinction because the former has been presented as a rational defense for allowing some homicide, while the second merely devalues the lives of people with disabilities, cheapens their lives, and denies them equal protection of the law. This was exactly the question recently before a German court.Bernd Juergen Brandes, 43, wanted to die and asked to be killed.  Armin Meiwe, 42, a computer technician obliged him in Rotenberg, Germany in 2001.  Miewe made a video of the killing and afterwards began cannibalizing Brandes corpse. Under German law, the maximum penalty in a “mercy” killing is five years, and Meiwe appealed his manslaughter sentence saying that the death should have been considered a mercy killing. There was no question that Brandes wanted to die and asked Meiwe to end what he consdired to be his miserable life. In fact, he had contacted Brandes in response to an add looking for someone who would like to be killed. BUT Brandes did not have a physical illness or a disability, so the court rejected  an appeal based on the mercy killing law. 

For more gruesome details see Reuters report

The case is bizarre and convoluted, but the conclusion is crystal clear. “Mercy” killing is not about compassion or people who want to die, it is simply about setting a lower price on taking the life of a person with a terminal illness or disability.

Tags: "Mercy" Killing, Homicide