What Happens if You Are at the Bedside of Someone Committing Suicide and Do Not Preve

[edalxela]

My question involves criminal law for the state of: Tennessee, however, I personally reside in a state aside from Tennessee.

What will happen if you are at the bedside of a friend or loved one who is committing suicide (peacefully, painlessly and quietly, of course) and do not do anything to prevent them from dying? What if they have asked you to be there so they do not have to exit alone - are you liable for anything if this where to occur? What if a note was left in place stating that the person terminating his or her own life was of sound mind and body and is willfully terminating their life due to numerous reasons?

If this were to take place, as far as the police are concerned, I would not have been a part of this.

Perhaps this thread is located in the incorrect category - if so, I would appreciate it to be moved to the appropriate location.

[Disagreeable]

If you are not aware the person is actively doing so and are not a medical practitioner, who should have knowledge this is occurring, it becomes an issue of knowledge and intent.

[aardvarc]

The note is irrelevant - but generally, people of sound body and mind don't commit suicide. Using suicide as an escape from problems is, by definition, NOT sound mind. Criminally, unless you are one of a few types of persons with some special duty (such as police officers, for example, or parents or guardians of a minor or dependant adult), you have no duty to intervene to protect other (adult) people from themselves or from anything else. By way of example; a bunch of heroin users sitting in a room, one overdoses, goes into coma, and dies. Everyone else keeps partying on. Next day they come down and realize the friend is dead. Authorities may be able to charge anyone within reach of drugs or paraphernalia with possession (or constructive possession) but no criminal charge in the death itself if the drug was self administered - the user assumed that risk for themselves (and boy, is that a situation that is hard to explain to the family/survivors).

The civil side may be a different matter. Wrongful death suits from family/heirs/survivors/executors can get very creative, and expensive.

[indybail]

Why wouldn't you be trying to prevent the suicide?

[tc498]

They could be dying of some non curable disease and be in great suffering.

[aardvarc]

Which brings into question the issue of

the person terminating his or her own life was of sound mind and body and is willfully terminating their life due to numerous reasons

We haven't been made privy to the "numerous reasons" - but EITHER the person isn't of sound mind, OR isn't of sound body. Gotta be one of those.