ALBUQUERQUE, NM—Today, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico responded to the New Mexico Court of Appeals decision overturning the District Court ruling in Morris v. New Mexico, the case seeking the right for mentally competent, terminally ill patients to seek physician aid in dying. In 2014, the New Mexico 2nd District Court ruled that aid in dying is a fundamental right protected by the New Mexico State Constitution.
The following quote can be attributed to Laura Schauer Ives, the ACLU-NM cooperating attorney who argued the case in court:
“We are disappointed that the Court of Appeals did not uphold the district court’s ruling that physician aid in dying is a fundamental right. However, we are encouraged that one member of the court agrees that aid in dying is a fundamental right and another believes that it could be protected by the New Mexico Constitution on other grounds. We believe we have a strong case moving forward, and will be applying for cert in the New Mexico Supreme court where they will hopefully agree that mentally competent, terminally ill patients have the right to seek physician aid in dying if their suffering becomes unbearable.”
A copy of the court’s ruling can be obtained online here: https://coa.nmcourts.gov/documents/opinions/Morris%20FO.pdf
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