I. THE RIGHT-TO-DIE
On the night of April 15, 1975, for reasons still unclear, Karen Ann Quinlan ceased breathing for at least two 15 minute periods. Karen was 21 years old when she lapsed into a coma after a fatal drug overdose. Experts testified that she was in a persistent vegetative state. This condition means that although reflex actions may be present, the patient regains neither awareness nor purposeful behavior of any kind. Karen was placed on a respirator and never recovered consciousness. After 7 months, her father requested that the respirator be turned off but the hospital refused. The case reached the New Jersey Supreme Court and in 1976 it rendered the landmark decision that Karen Ann Quinlan had a constitutional right to die. The decision became the pivotal point for the reemergence of the debate on Euthanasia and the birth of Right-to-Die movements.
The right to life is recognized in virtually every society in the world. From the earliest......

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Title: Euthanasia
Approximate Word Count: 5235
Approximate Pages: 21 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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