Canberra man urges rethink on assisted dying laws after he helped wife die out of “love and compassion”

A Canberra man has urged legislators to review assisted dying laws after prosecutors dropped a charge against him for helping his terminally ill wife take her own life.

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A doting husband who helped his wife die out of “love and compassion” has urged legislators to review assisted suicide laws so terminally ill people can die with dignity.

Canberra man Neil O’Riordan said he was “relieved and grateful” after the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions on Tuesday withdrew a charge against him for aiding the suicide of his partner of 35 years Penelope Blume.

Ms Blume, a 68-year-old Buddhist, was suffering debilitating symptoms from the advanced stages of motor neurone disease and was facing death within months when she died in Mr O’Riordian’s arms on March 15.

Neil O'Riordan and wife Penelope Blume had been together 35 years.

“The subject of having a right to choose at the end of your life is something Penny and I discussed throughout our relationship,” Mr O’Riordan said.

“Neither of us wanted to be living in nursing homes or dependent on other people for everyday activities.

“I suspect for Penelope, who had always enjoyed really good health, that having a body that didn’t work anymore was catastrophic.”

In Australia only the state of Victoria, where the couple had considered moving to, has laws that support assisted dying.

“We made preparations around Victoria but my wife wanted to die at home and at a time and a place of her choosing and the only decision for me to make was to support her,” Mr O’Riordan said.

Mr O'Riordan following the ACT DPP’s decision to drop a charge against him for aiding the suicide of Ms Blume. Picture: Kate Christian.

“I think voluntary assisted dying is a topic that’s here to stay and it’s not going to go away and my wife’s condition was not uncommon.

“I’d like the ACT to consider it and the Commonwealth to consider its position in relation to its capacity to overrule the territories but I’m not a legislator.

“I think it’s up to our communities to express an opinion and Parliaments to make a decision about what’s in the community’s best interest.”

The federal parliament would need to repeal a law which currently prevents the ACT Government from making legislation on euthanasia.

The couple loved to travel South East Asia and lived in Bangkok for a period before returning to Canberra when her health deteriorated. Picture: Facebook.

Mr O’Riordan said he managed to postpone Ms Blume’s death several times but she was adamant she wanted to die when she was no longer able to care for herself.

“I told her I would never be ready and it would be a matter of when she was in the right place, she needed to tell me.”

He remembered Ms Blume as someone who loved to travel and live life to the full.

“I will be eternally grateful that our paths crossed and I’m the better person for the experience despite recent events.”

Mr O’Riordan leaves court on Wednesday, July 2 with his lawyer Taden Kelliher of Kamy Saeedi Law.

While ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold would not go into detail about how Mrs Blume died, he said she prepared two objects jointly with Mr O’Riordan.

One of the items had allegedly been modified by Mr O’Riordan to ensure she was unconscious prior to her death before she herself deployed the second item to cause her death.

By late 2018 when the disease was in its advanced stages, Ms Blume had conducted research and attended an education session to learn how to painlessly end her own life before it caused respiratory arrest, Mr Drumgold said.

Ms Blume wanted to take her own life before she completely lost her mobility and suffered respiratory failure.

He described Mr O’Riordian’s assistance as “minimal and motivated wholly by love and compassion, and designed to ensure that the deceased’s death was quick and painless”.

“Had the defendant not made minor modifications to an item used in the suicide, death would have still resulted, however, it may have been prolonged, resulting in a highly distressing process for the deceased,” he said.

Mr Drumgold said it was not in the public interest to prosecute Mr O’Riordan who did not stand to benefit financially from her death.

ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold.

“Furthermore, the defendant actively encouraged the deceased to delay ending her life, and successfully convinced her to delay it on at least one prior occasion,” Mr Drumgold said.

“The deceased was of sound mind and had expressed to a number of people over a period of time that she wished to end her life before her immobility prevented her from doing so, thus causing her to suffer a distressing death.”

Mr Drumgold said his exercise of discretion in this case is in no way intended to provide guidance for others on how to aid suicide or avoid prosecution.

“It should not be viewed as a policy decision on assisted suicide,” he said.

“This is not a government policy position, this is simply the application of the ACT prosecution policy to the very unique facts of this case alone.”

Neil O'Riordian tried to dissuade Penelope Blume from taking her life but then helped her as she was adamant she wanted to die with dignity. Picture: Facebook.

In her final moments, Mr O’Riordian sat with the love of his life hugging and talking until the early hours of the morning.

When she’d passed away, he cuddled her before phoning police whom he co-operated with fully during an interview that lasted more than three hours.

“I consider the consequences of any resulting conviction for the offence would be unduly harsh and oppressive in the circumstances,” Mr Drumgold said.

“Although the defendant was present for the deceased’s death, he stated that this was because he loved the deceased and did not want her to endure the trauma of death alone.”