commentary by Patrick H. Moore
I recently learned that an old friend of mine and his wife of many decades traveled to Switzerland last year where they were euthanized under approved Swiss governmental protocol. They were very old and infirm and had decided they didn’t want to suffer anymore. Although I hadn’t been in touch with them for many years, I have a soft spot in my heart for them and feel rather positive about their decision to bring their suffering to an end.
Their “journey to the end of the night” appears to have been handled with courage and dignity. Before their deaths, they spent 9 days doing their best to enjoy their European surroundings. My friend was a great “bon vivant” and I can imagine him enjoying fine food and wines as their day or reckoning neared.
Recently, in Brecksville, Ohio, a 58-year-old man named Steven Curtis faced the dilemma of his terminally ill father waiting out his final days in a nursing home. Mr. Curtis, who had reportedly spent three days there with his father, apparently became intoxicated and tried to hasten his death by attempting to smother him. As a result, he has been charged with attempted murder.
The authorities appear to recognize that the circumstances of Mr. Curtis’ actions may not have been malicious, and he has been released on a $50,000 bond which would probably not be the case if this were a “slam-dunk” attempted murder case.
Jack Shea of Fox8 Cleveland writes:
Attorneys Pat D’Angelo and Thomas Shaughnessy said Steven Curtis had been at his father’s bedside, realizing that his life was coming to an end. D’Angelo told the judge, “The accused was very attentive, was there taking care of him. His father had terminal cancer.” The attorneys maintain Curtis’ only interest was minimizing his father’s suffering. “It’s my understanding that they had ceased all food and water. He was simply on morphine for the last 72 hours, and this gentleman had actually stayed at the nursing home for all three days. He had actually slept there and was with his father,” said Shaughnessy.
Mr. Curtis pleaded not guilty in Garfield Heights Municipal Court to the attempted murder count, and to additional charges that included assault, menacing and disorderly conduct.
Although Mr. Curtis’ father, Roy Curtis, 86, died hours after his son was arrested, it’s not yet clear whether his son’s actions played any role in hastening his death. The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office will attempt to answer this question.
Here is what happened as reported by the police and Bryan Minard, an employee of the old folks’ home:
The police state that they were summoned to the Oaks of Brecksville nursing home early Monday morning when staff members reported Steven Curtis was intoxicated and had been seen placing his hands over his father’s mouth and nose, in what was interpreted as an attempt to end his life.
The Brecksville police further report that when staff members attempted to intervene, Mr. Curtis allegedly threw a telephone at them before assaulting one of the employees. He then tried to barricade himself inside his father’s room. These are the actions that led to the assault, menacing and disorderly conduct charges.
Oaks of Brecksville employee, Bryan Minard, said his co-workers handled the situation according to the training they had received:
“I’m glad they stepped in and actually you know take control of that, because that’s a crazy situation for you to try to end someone’s life early.”
Oaks of Brecksville issued a statement that reads, “We were made aware of an incident involving a son’s unfortunate reaction to his father`s end stage of life. We took all necessary precautions and notified the appropriate authorities. In speaking with the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner, we were informed that the decedent experienced no signs of trauma leading to his passing.”
At this point, the investigation is now being turned over to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office. A grand jury may eventually convene to hear evidence in order to decide if Curtis’s actions were those of a compassionate son, or whether he illegally took the law into his own hands and attempted to kill his father.
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My take on this is that Mr. Curtis became emotionally unhinged watching his father lying there in what could only have been a deteriorated and vegetative-like state. Does this justify him trying to smother his father, which it appears he was in the process of doing when the Oaks employees intervened? Of course not. On the other hand, it may not justify the attempted murder charge either.
There is also the key issue as to whether the son’s actions hastened his father’s death. It’s truly a shame that Mr. Curtis didn’t simply continue to pay faithful vigil as he apparently had for three days, allowing the hourglass of his father’s life to unwind as the morphine drip carried him slowly but surely to a less painful place.