Bouvia

*1134 Opinion

Petitioner, Elizabeth Bouvia, a patient in a public hospital, seeks the removal from her body of a nasogastric tube inserted and maintained against her will and without her consent by physicians who so placed it for the purpose of keeping her alive through involuntary forced feeding.

Petitioner has here filed a petition for writ of mandamus and other extraordinary relief after the trial court denied her a preliminary injunction requiring that the tube be removed and that the hospital and doctors be prohibited from using any other similar procedures. We issued an alternative writ. We have heard oral argument from the parties and now order issuance of a peremptory writ, granting petitioner, Elizabeth Bouvia, the relief for which she prayed.

Discussion

1. Availability of Immediate Relief Here.

It is appropriate for this court to immediately determine the issues raised by this petition. We realize that by deciding the pivotal issue presented our ruling will affect the entire lawsuit, including causes of action on which there has yet been no plenary trial. But this is an unusual case. Although important to real parties in interest, it is urgent to petitioner.

The…

Although I have concurred in the very well reasoned and superbly crafted opinion of my colleague Justice Beach, I feel compelled to write separately and reflect on what I consider to be one of the real tragedies of this case, which is that Elizabeth Bouvia has had to go to such ends to obtain relief from her suffering.

Fate has dealt this young woman a terrible hand. Can anyone blame her if she wants to fold her cards and say “I am out”? Yet medical personnel who have had charge of her case have attempted to force Elizabeth to continue in the game. In their efforts they have been abetted by two different trial courts.

This is not to say that those members of the medical profession and those courts were not well motivated. In each instance the persons involved have expressed a concern for the sanctity of life and a desire to avoid any conduct that could be characterized as aiding in a suicide. Undoubtedly, those persons were, in no small way, influenced by the presence in our law of Penal Code section 401, which imposes penal sanctions on persons who aid and abet in a suicide.

In my opinion, as I shall point out, the application of that statute to circumstances such as are…

De Witt W. Clinton, County Counsel, Daniel D. Mikesell, Jr., Senior Deputy County Counsel, and Steven J. Carnevale, Principal Deputy County Counsel, for Real Parties in Interest.

OPINION

BEACH, J.

Petitioner, Elizabeth Bouvia, a patient in a public hospital, seeks the removal from her body of a nasogastric tube inserted and maintained against her will and without her consent by physicians who so placed it for the purpose of keeping her alive through involuntary forced feeding.

Petitioner has here filed a petition for writ of mandamus and other extraordinary relief after the trial court denied her a preliminary injunction requiring that the tube be removed and that the hospital and doctors be prohibited from using any other similar procedures. We issued an alternative writ. We have heard oral argument from the parties and now order issuance of a peremptory writ, granting petitioner, Elizabeth Bouvia, the relief for which she prayed.

It is appropriate for this court to immediately determine the issues raised by this petition. We realize that by deciding the pivotal issue presented our ruling will affect the entire lawsuit, including causes of action on which there has yet been…