Two women in Sydney have been granted bail after a week in custody for the mercy killing of a former pilot. Shirley Justins, 58, and Caren Jenning, 74, are accused of poisoning of Ms Justin’s long-time partner, Graeme Wylie, 71. He was suffering from severe dementia. Police allege that she convinced him to change his will for his A$2.5 million estate before administering the lethal barbiturate Nembutal.

Mr Wylie’s death, in March 2006, came a year after his application to die in a suicide clinic had been rejected by Swiss authorities because he was no longer capable of making responsible decisions.

Ms Jenning, a supporter of the euthanasia activist group Exit International, travelled to Mexico to obtain the Nembutal at a wholesale vet store. The case is becoming a cause celebre for the euthanasia movement. Australia’s leading activist, Dr Philip Nitschke, joined other supporters in the women’s court appearances.

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Michael Cook

Michael Cook edits BioEdge, a bioethics newsletter, and MercatorNet, an on-line magazine whose focus is human dignity. He writes from Sydney, Australia.

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