Source: The West Australian

A landmark court ruling on whether a Perth quadriplegic may be allowed to starve to death could be decided as early as next Friday.

Lawyer John Hammond requested WA Supreme Court chief justice Wayne Martin hold a bedside hearing next Friday for his client, Christian Rossiter, 49, at Brightwater nursing home in the northern suburbs where he is being cared for.

The Brightwater Care Group has lodged an application seeking advice on whether the nursing home should continue feeding Mr Rossiter, despite his wish to starve to death.

Mr Rossiter developed spastic quadriplegia last year after a series of crippling spinal injuries left him largely confined to bed and dependent on around-the-clock care.

In 1988, he fell 30m from a building and in 2004 his injuries were made worse when he was struck by a car while riding a bicycle.

He says he has gone from being a keen cyclist and bushwalker holding a degree in economics and travelling the world to someone not able to even read a newspaper because he cannot turn the pages and his eyesight has deteriorated rapidly. He says he would prefer swift and painless euthanasia but the next best option is to be allowed to refuse nutrition so he can die using painkillers to dull the pain.

Mr Rossiter has described his situation in total paralysis as “a living hell”.

A court date for the case has been set for next Friday.

The office of the attorney-general was represented in court by lawyer Andrew Shuy.

In court on Friday, Mr Hammond said his client would like the opportunity to defend his case in person because the impact of his evidence would be lost in court documents.

Transporting Mr Rossiter to court would be difficult and cause him physical pain, so a bedside hearing would be preferable, Mr Hammond said.

Chief Justice Martin said he would consider the request, but that a written statement might be sufficient.

“I’m hoping the court won’t force them (the nursing home) to sustain my feed. I think the law should be changed,” Mr Rossiter said yesterday.

“I’d like to die. I’m a prisoner in my own body, I can’t move and I can’t even wipe the tears from my eyes. I have to be fed through a tube and I have to have my nutrients piped into my stomach.”

Mr Rossiter said the carers who looked after him were “very kind but understaffed” and he hoped that if his bid to refuse feeding was successful, they would be put at ease.

Brightwater said in a statement that it was going to the Supreme Court because it faced a conflict between its duty of care and its obligation to respect Mr Rossiter’s wishes. It neither endorsed nor opposed his request to withdraw feeding.

Chief executive Penny Flett said it was a complex legal issue. “We are seeking advice from the court so that we are able to provide the best possible care for Mr Rossiter,” she said.

Right-to-die advocate Philip Nitschke said today Mr Rossiter’s case had attracted international interest.
 
In a statement, Mr Nitschke said an Asian media group had offered to set up a 24-hour webcam so people around the world could monitor Mr Rossiter and his plight.