Close X
Sunday, November 24, 2024
ADVT 
National

US judge convicts ex-nurse of attempting to assist Canadian's suicide

Darpan News Desk Canadian Press, 09 Sep, 2014 11:31 AM
  • US judge convicts ex-nurse of attempting to assist Canadian's suicide

An ex-nurse who admitted going online and encouraging people to kill themselves was convicted Tuesday assisting the suicide of an English man and attempting to assist in the suicide of a Canadian woman.

The conviction followed a legal battle that has spanned more than four years and led to the reversal of part of a Minnesota state law that outlaws the practice.

Rice County District Judge Thomas Neuville ruled that the state proved that William Melchert-Dinkel, 52, of Faribault, assisted in the suicide in 2005 of Mark Drybrough, 32, of Coventry, England.

He said the state failed to prove Melchert-Dinkel 's assistance was a direct cause of the suicide in 2008 of Nadia Kajouji, 18, of Brampton, Ont., but found him guilty on a lesser charge of attempting to help her take her life. Kajouji was a student at Carleton University in Ottawa at the time.

Neuville scheduled a sentencing hearing for Oct. 15. The same judge had also convicted Melchert-Dinkel in 2011 of encouraging the two suicides but put his 360-day jail sentence on hold pending appeals.

The Minnesota Supreme Court reversed Melchert-Dinkel 's conviction in March, saying part of a state law that made it illegal to "advise" or "encourage" suicides was an unconstitutionally broad restriction on free speech.

However, the justices upheld a part of the law that makes it a crime to "assist" in someone's suicide. The ruling said speech alone can be used to assist or enable a suicide if it is narrowly targeted to one person and provides that person with what is needed to carry out the act.

The state Supreme Court sent the case back to the lower court for further proceedings because the judge did not rule at the time on whether Melchert-Dinkel actually assisted in the two suicides.

Evidence in the case showed Melchert-Dinkel was obsessed with suicide and sought out depressed people online. He posed as a suicidal female nurse, feigning compassion and offering step-by-step instructions on how they could kill themselves. He acknowledged participating in online chats about suicide with up to 20 people and entering into fake suicide pacts with about 10, five of whom he believed killed themselves.

At a hearing last month, Assistant Rice County Attorney Terence Swihart said Melchert-Dinkel provided Kajouji and Drybrough with specific information on methods for killing themselves, going beyond merely expressing opinions.

But defence attorney Terry Watkins said there was no evidence to prove that Melchert-Dinkel's advice led directly to their deaths.

MORE National ARTICLES

Canada Talks Tough On Ukraine, But Cuts $2.7-billion From Defence In 2015

Canada Talks Tough On Ukraine, But Cuts $2.7-billion From Defence In 2015
OTTAWA - Stephen Harper has been one of the toughest-talking leaders throughout the Ukraine crisis, yet newly released figures show National Defence is expected to face an even deeper budget hole in the coming year than previously anticipated.

Canada Talks Tough On Ukraine, But Cuts $2.7-billion From Defence In 2015

What the US military wants for missile defence: multi-use sensors in the Arctic

What the US military wants for missile defence: multi-use sensors in the Arctic
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - American military officials have shed some light on what Canada could contribute to the missile-defence program should it choose to join after a decade spent on the sidelines.

What the US military wants for missile defence: multi-use sensors in the Arctic

Quebec Elementary School Bans Homework For The Year

Quebec Elementary School Bans Homework For The Year
MONTREAL - Students at one Quebec school can expect to have a little more free time on their hands this year.

Quebec Elementary School Bans Homework For The Year

Left-wing Think-tank Targeted For Tax Audit Because Its Research Shows 'Bias'

Left-wing Think-tank Targeted For Tax Audit Because Its Research Shows 'Bias'
OTTAWA - A left-leaning think-tank was targeted by the Canada Revenue Agency for a political-activities audit last fall partly because the research and education material on its website appears to be "biased" and "one-sided."

Left-wing Think-tank Targeted For Tax Audit Because Its Research Shows 'Bias'

Annaleise Carr powers through the night to finish marathon swim across Lake Erie

Annaleise Carr powers through the night to finish marathon swim across Lake Erie
PORT DOVER, Ont. - Sixteen-year-old Annaleise Carr completed her marathon swim across Lake Erie on Monday after returning to the water overnight to finish the exhausting final leg of her journey.

Annaleise Carr powers through the night to finish marathon swim across Lake Erie

Dead at Noon: B.C. Woman's Public Plea For Assisted Suicide Spurs Debate

Dead at Noon: B.C. Woman's Public Plea For Assisted Suicide Spurs Debate
VANCOUVER - Gillian Bennett's family scattered her ashes this weekend, in a quiet ritual shared by those she loved. She was, after all, an intensely private person, her daughter said.

Dead at Noon: B.C. Woman's Public Plea For Assisted Suicide Spurs Debate