Does woman's death in Sarco suicide pod violate Switzerland's laws ...

Swiss authorities have arrested four people in connection to a woman's death after she chose the Sarco capsule to end her life. File image/AP

An American woman’s death in an assisted suicide capsule in Switzerland has snowballed into a criminal and legal matter with Swiss authorities arresting four people on Tuesday (September 24).

Police in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, wrote in a news release that “the public prosecutor’s office of the canton of Schaffhausen has opened criminal proceedings against several persons for incitement and aiding and abetting suicide” and that “several persons have been placed in police custody.”

This comes after an unidentified 64-year-old American woman made use of the so-called suicide pod, called Sarco, on Monday afternoon in a forest close to the German border in the Swiss town of Merishausen.

What’s the case? How does the suicide pod work? We take a closer look at this case and why it has become a legal matter.

Death by capsule

On Monday (September 23), a 64-year-old woman from the US Midwest died in the Sarco pod, becoming the first person to end her life using the controversial capsule.

The Last Resort, the company that developed and manages the machine, said that the woman died under a canopy of trees at a private forest retreat in the canton of Schaffhausen in northern Switzerland. The firm said that the woman had chosen the Sarco capsule after suffering for many years from a number of serious problems associated with severe immune compromise.

In a statement, it added that the death was “peaceful, fast and dignified.”

The Sarco suicide capsule is a 3D-printed capsule that gives the user the ultimate control over the timing of her/his death, which was created by Australian euthanasia advocate Philip Nitschke. File image/Reuters

The pod in question

The woman’s death has shone a spotlight on the Sarco pod, which is the brainchild of Philip Nitschke, an Australian physician famous for his work on assisted suicide since the 1990s. His work has also earned him the nickname of Dr Death.

The capsules have also been named, Sarco, as an abbreviation for the sarcophagus coffins that were used in Ancient Egypt, Rome, and Greece.

But how does it work?

First introduced in 2019, the sleek-looking contraption replaces oxygen with nitrogen inside the pod, leading to death through hypoxia (low levels of oxygen in body tissues). According to the company managing the Sarco pod, the user is meant to fall asleep and, according to rumours, suffocate to death within a few minutes.

The Sarco pod is made with the help of a 3D printer and costs more than a million dollars to develop.

Nitschke speaking on the pod had earlier said that there’s no changing your mind when using it. “Once you press that button, there’s no way of going back,” he was quoted as saying earlier.

Australian euthanasia advocate Philip Nitschke is the brains behind the Sarco suicide pod. File image/Reuters

The arrests and the legal case

A day after news emerged that the woman had died using the controversial Sarco pod, Swiss authorities have arrested four people and opened criminal proceedings against them for “inducing and aiding and abetting suicide”.

Police said a law firm informed them about the suicide involving the device. “The Sarco suicide capsule was secured and the deceased person was taken to the IRMZ for autopsy,” police were quoted as telling DW. “In addition, several people in the Merishausen area were placed in police custody. Prosecutors are also examining other potential criminal acts.”

It remains unknown as to who has been arrested and what are the exact charges being levelled on them.

The arrests come as the use of these capsules is not fully compliant with Swiss law as of now. According to Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, the minister for health, the capsule does not meet the requirement of product safety law, and its use of nitrogen is not legally compliant. She told parliament on Monday, “Firstly, it does not meet the requirements of product safety law and therefore cannot be placed on the market. Secondly, the corresponding use of nitrogen is not compatible with the purpose article of the chemicals act.”

However, the company, Last Resort, has defended itself by saying, “The Last Resort was acting at all times on the legal advice of their lawyers. Legal advice since 2021 has consistently found that the use of Sarco in Switzerland would be lawful.”

It further added that the woman, who had died, had confirmed that it had been her wish to die and she had the support of her two sons.

Swiss laws on death

The woman’s death in the Sarco pod has also raised questions about Switzerland’s laws on assisted suicide and euthanasia.

While these two terms are often used interchangeably, there is a difference between them. Assisted suicide is the act of helping another person end their life intentionally. It can involve someone who is not terminally ill. Euthanasia, on the other hand, is the deliberate act of ending someone’s life to relieve them of their suffering. Euthanasia involves a lethal drug being administered by a physician.

In Switzerland, the law states that the person wishing to die must perform the act leading to death themselves. Representational image/AFP

In Switzerland, the law states that the person wishing to die must perform the act leading to death themselves. The doctors involved in the process are responsible for checking the capability of judgement and determining if the desire to die is well-considered, permanent, and comprehensible in view of the circumstances and the available treatment options.

If this is met, they can prescribe the drug to the person. However, the Swiss Criminal Code adds that if these requirements are not met, and an individual induces or assists someone else to die of suicide for “selfish motives,” this could carry a jail penalty of up to five years.

The laws on assisted suicide in Switzerland are also extended to foreigners, which means that people from outside the Alpine nation can also go there to end their life. This has, in fact, led to a form of “death tourism” with many foreigners choosing Switzerland for their final breath. Earlier in July, a report stated that over 1,000 people had chosen to end their life in Switzerland through assisted suicide organisations such as Exit or Dignitas.

With inputs from agencies