Are you comitting a crime by counselling/encouraging a suicidal person

Assisted suicide
In many jurisdictions it is a crime to assist others, directly or indirectly, in taking their own lives. In some jurisdictions, it is also illegal to encourage them to do so. Sometimes an exception applies for physician assisted suicide (PAS), under strict conditions.

Laws in individual jurisdictions
Australia (Victoria)
In the Australian state of Victoria, while suicide itself is no longer a crime, a survivor of a suicide pact can be charged with manslaughter. Also, it is a crime to counsel, incite, or aid and abet another in attempting to commit suicide, and the law explicitly allows any person to use "such force as may reasonably be necessary" to prevent another from committing suicide.

India
In India, attempted suicide is an offence punishable under Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code. Section 309 reads thus: Attempt to commit suicide. "Whoever attempts to commit suicide and does any act towards the commission of such offence, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or with fine, or with both."
A Division Bench of the Supreme Court of India in P. Rathinam v. Union of India (AIR 1994 SC 1844) held that the right to live of which Article 21 speaks of can be said to bring in its trail the right not to live a forced life, and therefore, section 309 violates Article 21. This decision was, however, subsequently overruled in Gian Kaur v. State of Punjab (AIR 1996 SC 946) by a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, holding that Article 21 could not be construed to include within it the ‘right to die’ as a part of the fundamental right guaranteed therein; therefore, it was ruled that it could not be validly stated that section 309 is violative of Article 21.[4]
In 2008 the Law Commission of India submitted a review to the government to repeal section 309. The Law Commission said "The Supreme Court in Gian Kaur focused on constitutionality of section 309. It did not go into the wisdom of retaining or continuing the same in the statute." The Commission has resolved to recommend to the Government to initiate steps for repeal of the anachronistic law contained in section 309, IPC, which would relieve the distressed of his suffering. In India, suicide is above "world-rate".

Ireland
Attempted suicide is not a criminal offence in Ireland and under Irish law self-harm is not generally seen as a form of attempted suicide. Assisted suicide and euthanasia are, however, illegal.

Netherlands
In the Netherlands, being present and giving moral support during someone's suicide is not a crime; neither is supplying general information on suicide techniques. However, it is a crime to participate in the preparation for or execution of a suicide, including supplying lethal means or instruction in their use. (Physician-assisted suicide may be an exception. See Euthanasia in the Netherlands.)

North Korea
North Korea has a peculiar deterrent for suicides. Although law cannot punish a dead person, in North Korea relatives of a criminal (including a suicide victim) might be penalized, as a form of collective punishment.

Russian Federation
In Russia, inciting someone to suicide by threats, cruel treatment, or systematic humiliation is punishable by up to 5 years in prison. (Article 110 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation)

Singapore
In Singapore, a person who attempts to commit suicide can be imprisoned for up to one year.

United Kingdom
England and Wales
See also: Felo de se
Laws against suicide (and attempted suicide) prevailed in English common law until 1961. English law perceived suicide as an immoral, criminal offence against God and also against the King.[5] It first became illegal in the 13th century.[6] Until 1822, in fact, the possessions of somebody who committed suicide could even be forfeited to the Crown.[7]
Suicide ceased to be an offence with the passing of the Suicide Act 1961; the same Act makes it an offence to assist in a suicide. Whilst the act of suicide is lawful, the consequences of committing suicide might turn an individual event into an unlawful act, as in the case of Reeves v Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis [2000] 1 AC 360,[8] where a man in police custody hanged himself and was held equally liable with the police (a cell door defect enabled the hanging) for the loss suffered by his widow; the practical effect was to reduce the police damages liability by 50%. In 2009, the House of Lords ruled that the law concerning the treatment of people who accompanied those who committed assisted suicide was unclear, following Debbie Purdy's case that this lack of clarity was a breach of her human rights. (In her case, as a sufferer from multiple sclerosis, she wanted to know whether her husband would be prosecuted for accompanying her abroad where she may eventually wish to commit assisted suicide, if her illness progressed.) As a result, this law is expected to be revised.[9]

Scotland
There was no legislation on this topic until 1961 when the Suicide Act was passed. Suicide is not currently an offence under Scots Law. However, the offence of attempting suicide is a Breach of the peace. A person who assists a suicide might be charged with murder, culpable homicide, or no offense depending upon the facts of each case.

United States
Historically, various states listed the act of suicide as a felony, but these policies were sparsely enforced. In the late 1960s, eighteen U.S. states lacked laws against suicide.[10] By the late 1980s, thirty of the fifty states had no laws against suicide or suicide attempts but every state had laws declaring it to be felony to aid, advise or encourage another person to commit suicide.[11] By the early 1990s only two states still listed suicide as a crime, and these have since removed that classification.[citation needed] In some U.S. states, suicide is still considered an unwritten "common law crime," as stated in Blackstone's Commentaries. (So held the Virginia Supreme Court in Wackwitz v. Roy in 1992.)[citation needed] As a common law crime, suicide can bar recovery for the late suicidal person's family in a lawsuit unless the suicidal person can be proven to have been "of unsound mind." That is, the suicide must be proven to have been an involuntary act of the victim in order for the family to be awarded monetary damages by the court. This can occur when the family of the deceased sues the caregiver (perhaps a jail or hospital) for negligence in failing to provide appropriate care.[12] Some American legal scholars look at the issue as one of personal liberty. According to Nadine Strossen, former President of the ACLU, "The idea of government making determinations about how you end your life, forcing you...could be considered cruel and unusual punishment in certain circumstances, and Justice Stevens in a very interesting opinion in a right-to-die [case] raised the analogy."[13]
Physician-assisted suicide is legal in some states.[14] For the terminally ill, it is legal in the state of Oregon under the Oregon Death with Dignity Act. In Washington state, it became legal in 2009, when a law modeled after the Oregon act, the Washington Death with Dignity Act was passed. A patient must be diagnosed as having less than six months to live, be of sound mind, make a request orally and in writing, have it approved by two different doctors, then wait 15 days and make the request again. A doctor may prescribe a lethal dose but may not administer it.[15]
In many jurisdictions, medical facilities are empowered or required to commit anyone whom they believe to be suicidal for evaluation and treatment. See Code 5150 for example.

[Dragonfly1]

Well researched Res.. and very informative..thanks ...Peace x

Thanks dragonfly1. Now you know what res is short for

I would urge anyone that is considering participating in threads where a person is considering ending their life to check with your local authorities for the legislation that may apply to you if your intention is to encourage thier action in any way that may be interpreted as assisting or counselling them toward thier goal.

There are no laws that prohibit counselling people by discouraging thier self destructive behaviour or reserving you right to be silent.

Hey how did that bunny get there . Damn i was all serious and everything..lol

[Sarian]

Originally Posted by res

Hey how did that bunny get there . Damn i was all serious and everything..lol

LOL, Res...

But seriously, you do RESearch very well.

[Native spirit]

Everything should work out in theory if youre ill you get healed but if that pain cannot be cured, you will look for other means.i dont agree with the law whatsoever when it comes to assisted suicide etc, if the person is of sound mind but unable to carry out the act of doing the deed themselves. they should be able to ask for assistance, without the other person being faced with taken to court,
if you let an animal suffer you will be fined and told not to have pets for a number of years, if its a human being its different,
the law is pathetic in my view, why do you think so many people go abroad to die. and to say suicide is classed as a crime against the king in the uk.tough im not a royalist anyway to me they are a waste of money and time.
but a person who is critical and severe pain must suffer or the person assisting in the suicide will be fined or im prisoned, suicided are a private thing to the person he or she will have their own reasons for wanting to end their lives, and they should have the free will to do it.
im only speaking for suicides in ppl who are really ill and dying anyway. not for siucides that occur because the person is at a very low ebb in their lives sometimes counselling can help them. but each case is different,
i have been in a situation where a person was near to death in severe pain no amount of pain relief could help. i didnt help that person only by listening to why they were thinking of commmiting suicide that person said i cant stand the pain anymore i want it to end.
i know what the law states but as i said i dont agree with it either.

Namaste

There are so many views on our rights to end your own life early and for me personally i would read what others had to say if someone were passionate enough to start a thread about that subject.

Thanks sarian you are too kind.

Yes, I feel legaly you are comming a crime, If you assist in a suicide, verbally or physically.
YET
we put are loved ones/ animals tyo sleeo when they are in pain, so why not have the same compassion for our family members I would never ask my family to make that decision. I have been suicidal, read many books and the wonderful internet on this very subject.
I dow worry about cults, young adults or mentally unstable people haveing the legal right to kill themselves.
Matbe the government needs to address this. I sure do not think a person who attempts suicide needs to have a crimnal record.

Listening to someone with compassion and having a conversation with them about their intentions should never be equated with encouraging or assisting them.

Its interesting to see what each person takes from this, which is not always what the question actually is....which is "Are you comitting a crime by counselling/encouraging a suicidal person". I can see where interpretation of words can lend toward emotional attachment to certain parts of a very varied statement of issues.

coun·sel (kounsl)
n.
1. The act of exchanging opinions and ideas; consultation.
2. Advice or guidance, especially as solicited from a knowledgeable person.
3. A plan of action.

1. To give counsel to; advise.
2. To recommend:

I believe counsel is used in the context of actual encouragement "toward" suicide but it is interesting that this dictionary definition seems to imply that "the act of exchanging opinions and ideas" with someone that displays a want to end their life prematurely is classed as providing counsel. Maybe this is to protect from such ideas being sensationalised in society, like in cults and the mentally unstable as you mentioned Sumrwind. Nice point.

I wouldnt know where to start with the whole right to death issue. I suppose animals dont have a voice, which may make it easier for people to make decisions for them but im not qualified to make that assessment so i dont know. Thats a sensitive one for sure.

I'm pretty sure listening is not a crime Rin, especially with the compassion you possess.