Inquest Opens into Couple's Double Suicide Death at Swiss Dignitas Facility

BEDFORDSHIRE, UK, June 22, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - An inquest into the double suicide deaths of a married couple at the Swiss Dignitas facility opened Tuesday in the UK. Robert and Jennifer Stokes died April 1 last year in the Swiss assisted-suicide clinic -- neither were terminally ill, according to a Scotsman news report. Robert, 59, suffered from epilepsy and depression, while his wife, 53, had arthritis of the spine.

The couple is reported to have succumbed to a lethal dose of a barbiturate sedative known as pentobarbitone, also commonly used to euthanise animals.

The inquest was told the couple were "attention seeking," according to the Scotsman report, and were fulfilling a pre-arranged pact.

The couple's son David released a statement saying that he believed his parents to be mentally disturbed, but he had no knowledge of any terminal illness.

Coroner David Morris heard testimony at the inquest that the pair were each "helped" to commit suicide by a "euthanasia assistant."

The Scotsman report claims Dignitas requires evidence that a patient is incurable. A May LifeSiteNews.com report, however, quoted Dignitas founder, Ludwig Minelli, telling the UK's Telegraph that they would gladly assist anyone, "irrespective of medical condition."

Read the related LifeSiteNews.com report:
Swiss Lure Suicide Victims: Euthanasia Administered Within 24 Hours
"It does not matter what people are suffering from, we do not refuse anyone."