Gonzales v. Oregon
| Gonzales v. Oregon | |
|---|---|
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| Argued October 5, 2005 Decided January 17, 2006 |
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| Full case name | Alberto R. Gonzales, Attorney General, et al., v. Oregon, et al. |
| Docket nos. | 04-623 |
| Citations | 546 U.S. 243 (more)
126 S.Ct. 904, 2006 U.S. LEXIS 767, 74 USLW 4068, 06 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 433, 2006 Daily Journal D.A.R. 608, 19 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 49
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| Prior history | Summary judgment granted to plaintiffs in part, permanent injunction entered, sub nom. Oregon v. Ashcroft, 192 F. Supp.2d 1077 (D. Ore. 2002); on appeal, treated as transferred, petitions for review granted, injunction continued, 368 F.3d 1118 (9th Cir. 2003); cert. granted, sub. nom. Gonzales v. Oregon, 125 S.Ct. 1299 (2005) |
| Holding | |
| The Controlled Substances Act does not allow the US Attorney General to prohibit doctors from prescribing regulated drugs for use in physician-assisted suicide under state law that permitted the procedure. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is affirmed. | |
| Court membership | |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Kennedy, joined by Stevens, O'Connor, Souter, Ginsburg, Breyer |
| Dissent | Scalia, joined by Roberts, Thomas |
| Dissent | Thomas |
| Laws applied | |
| Ore. Rev. Stat. § 127.800 et seq. (2003) (Oregon Death With Dignity Act) 21 U.S.C. § 801 et seq. (Controlled Substances Act) 66 Fed. Reg. § 56608 (2001) |
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Gonzales v. Oregon, 546 U.S. 243 (2006), was a decision of the US Supreme Court, which ruled that the US Attorney General cannot enforce the federal Controlled Substances Act against physicians who prescribed drugs, in compliance with Oregon state law, to terminally ill patients seeking to end their lives, often referred to as medical aid in dying. It was the first major case heard under the leadership of Chief Justice John Roberts.
In 1994, voters in the state of Oregon approved Measure 16, a ballot initiative that established the Oregon Death with Dignity Act, with 51.3% of voters supporting it and 48.7% opposing it. The Act legalized medical aid in dying in the state of Oregon. A 1997 referral by the Oregon Legislative Assembly aimed to repeal the Death with Dignity Act but was defeated by a 60% margin.
The law permits physicians to prescribe a lethal dose of medication to a competent adult, agreed by two doctors to be within six months of dying from an incurable condition. As of February 29, 2012, the Oregon Public Health Division reported that since "the law was passed in 1997, a total of 935 people have had DWDA prescriptions written and 596 patients have died from ingesting medications prescribed under the DWDA."
On November 9, 2001, Attorney General John Ashcroft issued an Interpretive Rule that physician-assisted suicide was not a legitimate medical purpose and that any physician administering federally controlled drugs for that purpose would be in violation of the Controlled Substances Act.
The State of Oregon, joined by a physician, a pharmacist, and a group of terminally ill patients, all from Oregon, filed a challenge to the Attorney General's rule in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon. The court ruled for Oregon and issued a permanent injunction against the enforcement of the Interpretive Rule. The ruling was affirmed by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
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