All Cases For Introduction to Law and the Legal System, 12th Edition Frank August Schubert Chapter 1-14 INTERNET MATERIALS FOR CHAPTER 1
Physician Assisted Suicide Robert Baxter v. State of Montana Vagueness Chicago v. Morales Physician Assisted Suicide
Robert Baxter v. State of Montana 2009 MT 449 Supreme Court of Montana December 31, 2009. Justice W. William Leaphart delivered the Opinion of the Court. The State of Montana appeals from the Order of the First Judicial District Court granting summary judgment in favor of Robert Baxter, Stephen Speckart, M.D., C. Paul Loehnen, M.D., Lar Autio, M.D., George Risi, Jr., M.D., and Compassion & Choices; and from the District Court's decision that a competent, terminally ill patient has a right to die with dignity under Article II, Sections 4 and 10 of the Montana Constitution, which includes protection of the patient's physician from prosecution under the homicide statutes. We affirm in part and reverse in part. We rephrase the following issues on appeal: Whether the District Court erred in its decision that competent, terminally ill patients have a constitutional right to die with dignity, which protects physicians who provide aid in dying from prosecution under the homicide statutes. Whether Mr. Baxter is entitled to attorney fees. BACKGROUND This appeal originated with Robert Baxter, a retired truck driver from Billings who was terminally ill with lymphocytic leukemia with diffuse lymphadenopathy. At the time of the District Court's decision, Mr. Baxter was being treated with multiple rounds of chemotherapy, which typically become less effective over time. As a result of the disease and treatment, Mr. Baxter suffered from a variety of debilitating symptoms, including infections, chronic fatigue