Piergiogio Welby: Died peacefully, or murdered?

Enter the death of Piergiogio Welby, the most controversial end-of-life ethics case since Terri Schaivo. Welby was a paralyzed Italian author who fought muscular dystrophy. Hooked up to a respirator, Welby, 60, fought with doctors and politicians to be allowed to end his life, even writing a book detailing his thoughts on the subject. Piergiogio Welby's widow is defending the doctor who disconnected his respirator, saying: "For me it was not murder, absolutely. Piero died naturally, falling asleep and giving back his soul to the creator."

The Roman Catholic Church has denied a religious funeral for him, saying that it would treat his public wish to end his life as a willful suicide. Anti-euthanasia campaigners are calling Welby's death a murder. The Vatican, which still has a strong influence in Italian politics, vehemently opposes euthanasia, saying that life must be protected from the beginning to it's "natural" end. The Vicar of Rome said that a religious funeral was denied for Welby because of his "repeated and publicly affirmed" desire to "end his life."

Not too long before Welby's life was ended, a judge in Rome recognized Welby's right to refuse treatment. However, the judge also ruled that there is no law that could "force a doctor to take measures" that would lead to a patent's death, even at the patent's request. Because of this contradiction, basically, the judge said, the doctor can do whatever on earth he feels like.

Piergiogio Welby's life may have been very complicated and complex, but the issues that he raised leading to his death, and the questions asked in his wake, could help to shape the discussion of the right-to-die debates for years to come, for better or for worse.

(Click here to read a article on the subject by the AP's Ariel David.)