By Hanae
Edited by Harith Syafiee
KYOTO, 6 March 2024: On Tuesday, a doctor received an 18-year prison term for consensually ending the life of a woman with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 2019 in Kyoto, western Japan.
Yoshikazu Okubo, 45, was convicted by the Kyoto District Court for administering a lethal sedative dose to Yuri Hayashi in her apartment on 30 November 2019 fulfilling her request. Prosecutors had aimed for a 23-year prison sentence.
ALS is a progressive neurological condition without a known cure or treatment. Judge Hiroshi Kawakami noted that Okubo, who wasn't Hayashi's primary doctor, met her once before causing her death.
As per the verdict, Okubo and ex-doctor Naoki Yamamoto, 46, gave Hayashi a lethal drug dose. Hayashi was then taken to a hospital but succumbed to the dose.
Last December, Yamamoto received a two-year-and-six-month prison term for collaborating with Okubo in Hayashi's consensual killing. Prosecutors contended that the case "did not fulfil the minimum requirement for euthanasia."
In contrast, Okubo's defence team asserted that Hayashi would have lived in perpetual fear of death without euthanasia. They argued that his actions honoured her desires and that convicting Okubo of murder would infringe upon her constitutional right to self-determination.
Euthanasia is not legally accepted in Japan. According to the Penal Code, causing someone's death with their request or consent can result in a prison term of six months to seven years.
Okubo was also determined to be responsible for the death of Yamamoto's 77-year-old father, Yasushi, in 2011, in cooperation with Yamamoto.
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