Jack kevorkian born
- •
Jack Kevorkian
(1928-2011)
Who Was Jack Kevorkian?
Jack Kevorkian was a pathologist who assisted people suffering from acute medical conditions in ending their lives. After years of conflict with the court system over the legality of his actions, he spent eight years in prison after a 1999 conviction. Kevorkian's actions spurred national debate on the ethics of euthanasia and hospice care.
Early Life
Jack Kevorkian was born Murad Kevorkian on May 26, 1928, in Pontiac, Michigan, the second of three children born to Armenian immigrants Levon and Satenig Kevorkian. Kevorkian's parents were refugees who escaped the Armenian Massacres that occurred shortly after World War I. Levon was smuggled out of Turkey by missionaries in 1912 and made his way to Pontiac, Michigan, where he found work at an automobile foundry.
Satenig fled the Armenian death march, finding refuge with relatives in Paris, and eventually reuniting with her brother in Pontiac. Levon and Satenig met through the Armenian community in their city, where they married and began their family. The couple welcomed a
- •
Retired pathologist Jack Kevorkian's assistance in the suicide of Janet Adkins, in June of 1990, did more than any other single action to make assisted suicide a hot button issue in the United States. Ironically, Dr Kevorkian's conviction last month on charges of second degree murder in Pontiac, Michigan, will probably have little if any impact on the further progress of the American assisted suicide “movement.”
Already acquitted by juries three times on charges of assisting suicides, Kevorkian's actions this time led armchair psychiatrists to conclude that the self proclaimed “Dr Death” must have had his own death wish. He escalated his practice from assisting suicide to direct mercy killing in the case of Thomas Youk, who suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He prepared a video showing his every action and the exact moment of Youk's death, and appeared with the video on a national television news programme, daring the authorities to prosecute him. Brought to trial on murder charges, he insisted on representing himself in court—a task for which he was woefully unprepare
- •
Magazine
The Life of Dr. Death
by Katie Vloet
The writing on the letter is shaky, but the message is clear. “Dear Dr. Kevorkian, HELP! I am a 41 year old victim of MS. I can no longer take care of myself. Being of sound mind, I wish to end my life peacefully. I know I will only get worse. Please help me. Sherry Miller.”
The letter from 1990 is typical of the correspondence received by Dr. Jack Kevorkian, who, during his life—and even now, four years after his death—was the best-known advocate for physician-assisted suicide in the United States. People who suffered from incurable pain and untreatable conditions wrote to him and asked, begged, pleaded for his help. He was, they said, their only hope.
“Dr. Kevorkian, My son is dying of Lou Gehrig’s disease. … He would like your help to leave this world and free his soul to everlasting life,” wrote Carol Loving in another letter. After Dr. Kevorkian assisted in her son’s suicide, she wrote again: “It is impossible for me to express the blessing of your assistance and the gratitude I feel as a mother.”
These letters are part of
Copyright ©bilders.pages.dev 2025