Assisted suicide.

WORKING DRAFT
2009
STATE OF
WYOMING
09LSO-0369

HOUSE BILL
NO.
HB0120

Assisted suicide.

Sponsored by:
Representative(s) Davison, Brechtel, Jaggi, McKim and Petersen and Senator(s) Cooper, Meier and Peterson

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to
crimes and offenses; creating the crime of assisting suicide; providing a penalty; providing exceptions;
and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of
Wyoming
:

Section 1.
W.S. 6
‑
2
‑
701 is created to read:

ARTICLE 7
ASSISTING SUICIDE

6
‑
2
‑
701.

Assisting suicide.

(a)

A person who has knowledge that another person intends to commit or attempt to commit suicide and who does either of the following
with the intention of enabling or facilitating the suicide
commits
the offense of
assisting suicide:

(i)

Provides the physical means by which the other person attempts or commits suicide;

(ii)

Participates in a physical act by which the other person attempts to commit or commits suicide.

(b)

Assisting suicide
is a felony punishable by imprisonment in the penitentiary for not more than twenty (20) years.

(c)

This section does not apply to:

(i)

A licensed health care provider who administers, prescribes or dispenses medications or procedures to relieve a person's pain or discomfort, even if the medication or procedure may hasten or increase the risk of death, unless the medications or procedures are intended to cause death;

(ii)

The withholding or withdrawing of medical treatment or life
-
prolonging procedures by a licensed health care provider
,
pursuant to
but not limited to
an advance health care directive
under
the
Wyoming Health Care Decisions Act
,
a
cardiopu
lmonary resuscitation directive

authorized under
W.S. 35
‑
22
‑
201 through 35
‑
22
‑
208
,

or a

psychiatric advance directive
authorized under
W.S. 35
‑
22
‑
301 through 35
‑
22
‑
308.

Section 2.

This act is effective July 1, 2009.

(END)

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HB0120