The Right to Be Protected from Committing Suicide

Erscheinungsjahr 2023
ISBN: 978-1-5099-4908-3
Verlag: Bloomsbury 3PL

Buch, Englisch, 284 Seiten, Paperback, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm, Gewicht: 436 g

This book argues that suicidal people have the right to receive treatment and for reasonable steps to be taken that they are protected from killing themselves. Those suffering threats to life from mental health issues deserve the same protection as those who face threats to life from ill health or violence from others. The book explores the ethical and legal case for giving those beset with suicidal thoughts the treatment they need and for reasonable steps to be taken to prevent them attempting suicide.

Debates around suicide tend to be dominated by cases involving those with terminal medical conditions seeking assisted dying. But of those wishing to die, it is far more common to find middle aged men and young people oppressed by mental health and personal problems. Too often the woeful failure in the funding of mental health services in the UK means that suicidal people are denied the support and help they desperately need. This ground-breaking book makes the legal and ethical case for recognising that the state and public authorities have a duty to provide and implement an effective suicide prevention strategy.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Herring, Jonathan

Fachgebiete

• Rechtswissenschaften Ausländisches Recht Common Law (UK, USA, Australien u.a.)

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1. Introduction

2. The Definition of Suicide

I. Introduction

II. Popular and Official Definitions

III. The Mental State

IV. Causation

V. Conclusion

3. The Causes of Suicide

I. Introduction

II. The Problems with Gathering Suicide Statistics

III. International Statistics

IV. Statistics for England and Wales
V. Suicidal Feelings

VI. Forms of Suicide

VII. Seeking to Identify the Causes of Suicide
VIII. Biological Theories

IX. Sociological Theories

X. Psychological Theories of Suicide

XI. Mental Illness

XII. Alcohol

XIII. Religion

XIV. Domestic Abuse

XV. Social Inequalities

XVI. Conclusion

4. Societal Responsibility for Suicide

I. Introduction

II. The Cultural Meaning of Suicide

III. Social Causes of Suicide
IV. Suicide and the Relational Self
V. Means

VI. Poverty

VII. Gender

VIII. Age and Suicide

IX. Clusters

X. Conclusion

5. Ethics and Suicide

I. Introduction

II. What is the Question?

III. The Principle of Autonomy

IV. Autonomy and Welfare

V. Capacity, Autonomy and Suicide

VI. Autonomy Issues: Limits

VII. A Duty to Commit Suicide?

VIII. Duties Towards the Suicidal: Drawing the Th reads Together

IX. Conclusion

6. Human Rights and Suicide

I. Introduction

II. Rights and Duties

III. The Positive Duty to Protect the Right to Life

IV. Does Suicide Infringe the Right to Life?
V. What Does the Duty Require?

VI. The Universal General Duty

VII. The Particular General Duty

VIII. Specific Operational Obligations to those in the Care of the State

IX. Breach of the Duty

X. Duty to Investigate

XI. United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
XII. Conclusion and the Way Ahead

7. The Current Law on Suicide

I. Introduction

II. Criminal Law Offences Prohibiting Suicide or Assisted Suicide

III. Criminal Offences for Failing to Prevent Suicide
IV. Mental Health Law

V. Mental Capacity Law

VI. Suicidal Children

VII. Conclusion

8. Prevention of Suicide

I. Introduction

II. The Case for Prevention

III. The Case against Suicide Prevention

IV. Developing Suicide Prevention Policies

V. Universal Interventions

VI. Selective Interventions

VII. Individual Interventions

VIII. Problems in Preventing Suicide

IX. Current Approach in the UK

X. Conclusion

9. Euthanasia and Suicide

I. Introduction

II. The General Debate on Assisted Dying

III. The Starting Point

IV. The Right to Die

V. Dealing with Hard Cases

VI. False Positives and False Negatives

VII. Conclusion and the Right to Die Debate

10. Conclusion

Über Autor(innen)

Herring, Jonathan
Jonathan Herring is Professor of Law at the University of Oxford and Fellow in Law at Exeter College, Oxford, UK.

Jonathan Herring is the DW Wolf-Clarendon Fellow in Law at Exeter College and Professor of Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford.