In 1984, amidst a rising tide of executions in the United States, Dr. Kevorkian began to explore the concept of offering death row inmates an alternative. His proposal involved allowing prisoners to donate their organs and undergo anesthesia as a means of execution, instead of methods like poison gas or the electric chair. This initiative led to an invitation to brief members of the California Legislature, who were considering a bill on this matter.
This experience proved to be a pivotal moment for Dr. Kevorkian. Fueled by the attention from both lawmakers and the media, he actively engaged in the burgeoning national conversation surrounding dying with dignity. In 1987, he traveled to the Netherlands to study the practices of Dutch physicians who were assisting terminally ill patients with suicide without facing legal repercussions. He sought to understand how these end-of-life services were being provided within a legally ambiguous space.
Returning to Michigan in 1988, Dr. Kevorkian initiated a new medical practice advertised in Detroit newspapers. He termed it “bioethics and obiatry,” offering “death counseling” to patients and their families. He openly communicated his intentions to reporters, emphasizing that his services were free of charge, with him personally covering all euthanasia-related expenses. He demonstrated to journalists a simple apparatus he had created: a metal frame designed to hold vials of drugs – thiopental, a sedative, and potassium chloride, to induce cardiac arrest – enabling patients to administer life-ending medication themselves.
The First “Medicide”
Dr. Kevorkian also articulated the “doctrine” he had formulated. This doctrine served a dual purpose: to ensure patient comfort and to shield himself from potential criminal prosecution for his end of life service. His protocol mandated that patients unequivocally express their desire to die. Consultations with family physicians and mental health professionals were required. Patients were given a minimum of one month to deliberate their decision, allowing for reconsideration. Dr. Kevorkian meticulously documented the process, videotaping interviews with patients, their families, and friends. He also recorded the suicides themselves, which he referred to as medicides.
On June 4, 1990, Janet Adkins, an Oregon teacher diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, became the first individual to seek Dr. Kevorkian’s assistance. Mrs. Adkins’s life concluded in Dr. Kevorkian’s 1968 Volkswagen van, parked at a campground near his residence. This marked the beginning of Dr. Kevorkian’s highly controversial and legally fraught journey providing end of life service, ultimately leading to his prosecution and sparking intense debate around assisted suicide and the right to die.
