Deadly Compassion: The Death of Ann Humphry and the Truth about Euthanasia

In 1989, when Derek Humphry, a founder of the Hemlock Society and author of Final Exit , learned that his second wife, Ann, like his first, had breast cancer, he left her. Ann committed suicide in 1991, leaving a note in which she accused Derek of driving her to it. She also raised questions about his role in his first wife's death, about which he wrote in Jean's Way (coauthored with Ann), and confessed to misgivings about their joint assistance in the double suicides of her parents. Ann's suicide and allegations shook the Hemlock Society, which advocates the legalization of ``assisted death'' for those who request it. Marker, director of the International Anti-Euthanasia Task Force, to whom Ann turned when Derek rejected her, may sometimes seem to exploit the Humphrys' troubles to fuel her arguments against euthanasia. But her concern that the distinction between assisted suicide and murder can be thin is vivid and palpable. Photos not seen by PW. (Apr.)