Mother of Dignitas suicide man will not face criminal charge

POLICE are not to pursue charges against a woman who took her paralysed son to a controversial Swiss euthanasia clinic to take his own life.

Helen Cowie last month publicly admitted taking her son Robert, 33, to the Dignitas clinic to commit suicide after he was left paralysed from the neck down.

Immediately after the admission on BBC Radio Scotland's Call Kaye programme, Strathclyde Police said they would consider the circumstances of Mr Cowie's death, but they have now decided not to launch an investigation.

A spokeswoman said yesterday: "Strathclyde Police is not conducting any investigation into the death of Robert Cowie at this time."

Mrs Cowie, of Cardonald in Glasgow, told the programme how her son went to Dignitas in October and "had a very peaceful ending".

She described the Dignitas experience as "wonderful, relaxed, peaceful and happy" but said she would rather have been able to do it in this country.

She said: "That really upsets me, that I had to take my son to Switzerland, and I had to leave his body there and wait for the ashes to come back.

"It should be allowed here, but not willy-nilly to everybody. It should be investigated hard because you have to be in a sane mind to have it done."

Dignitas is a Switzerland-based assisted dying group which over the past 12 years has helped 1,100 people to die. More than 150 Britons have chosen to die at its clinic in Zurich.

Independent Lothians MSP Margo MacDonald, who suffers from Parkinson's disease and who unsuccessfully piloted an End of Life Assistance Bill through Holyrood, said: "I think a Scottish clinic would be preferable to someone having to do what they presently have to do, which is leave their families and leave the country, to end their days.

"However, it would be more preferable for people to be allowed to end their days in their own homes."

She added: "I am absolutely proud that there has been so little upset surrounding a very sad event for this family who have lost a family member. And I am proud that the Scottish police have shown sensitivity. It's what I would have expected. But I think it's unfair to ask the police to make that decision."Ms MacDonald said the decision on whether to bring a prosecution in Scotland should ultimately lie with the procurator fiscal, not the police, and has called for clear guidance on whether it is legal to help someone end their own life under certain circumstances.

She is also preparing to lodge a new end of life Bill when the Scottish Parliament reconvenes in September.

"The vote on the last Bill simply reflected the fact that there was an election coming up and politicians become very conservative, with a small c, in the run-up to elections," she said.

"One of the reasons I stood for election again was to show that it is possible to support the right to end your own life at a time of your choosing and still be re-elected."

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Episcopal Church said it would be "reluctant" to see the right to assisted suicide entered into law: "It would be inappropriate to comment on individual cases. Differing views on End of Life choices exist within our Church, but generally people recognise that the underlying meaning of 'euthanasia' means 'dying well'.

"Christians believe that life is a gift from God. In responding to the End of Life Assistance (Scotland) Bill in 2010 our bishops indicated that they would be reluctant to see the right to die through assisted suicide formally enshrined in legislation."