Death certificate forms provided by the New York State Department of Health have six categories for reporting the manner of death, four of which are substantive: (1) natural cause; (2) accident; (3) homicide; and (4) suicide.[35] The two other categories are: undetermined circumstances; and pending investigation.[36]
The Act states that action taken in “accordance” with the Act shall not be construed for any purpose to constitute suicide or homicide under the law.[37]
The Act does not define accordance.[38] Dictionary definitions include “in the spirit of,” meaning “in thought or intention.”[39] In other words, a mere thought or intent to comply with the Act is sufficient to prevent a death from being treated as a suicide or homicide. The death will also not be an accident due its being an intended event. This leaves natural cause.
The certified manner of death will be natural cause, even if the actual cause of death was euthanasia. For this reason also, the Act’s purported euthanasia prohibition will be unenforceable. Legally, deaths will be natural.
Footnotes
[35] See New York State Certificate of Death in the appendix at A-70.
[36] Id.
[37] The Act § 2899-n,1.(b) states:
Action taken in accordance with this article [the proposed Act] shall not be construed for any purpose to constitute suicide, assisted suicide, suicide, promoting a suicide attempt, attempted euthanasia, mercy killing, or homicide under the law, including as an accomplice or accessory or otherwise. (Emphasis added) .A. 2694 10, lines 20-24, attached in the appendix at A-16; S. 3941 10, lines 16-20, in the appendix at A-29 to A-30.
[38] See the Act in its entirety.
[39] See definitions in the appendix at pages A-66 and A-67.
