Euthanasia is a practice that has become more common than realized in the United States. Various states in the Union have tried to legalize euthanasia within the past few years. Those states include Colorado, Florida, Maine, Michigan, New York, Washington, California and Oregon. North Carolina, Utah and Wyoming do not necessarily ban physician-assisted suicide. Euthanasia is criminalized in the remaining states (Johnson 25). Oregon is the only state that allows euthanasia under tightly controlled circumstances. (Johnson 26.) There are several bills that are circulating through U.S. courts and legislatures for and against euthanasia (Matas 14b). Even though euthanasia has a growing base of legal support in the United States, it is murder.

Oregon has had an ongoing battle about euthanasia since 1994. Citizens in the state approved Ballot Measure 16 in the 1994 November elections, which would have legalized euthanasia under limited conditions (Oregon 2). The National Right to Life Committee, sponsored by the Roman Catholic Church and other Christian denominations, obtained a court injunction to delay the imple

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1997 that the average American does not have the right to physician-assisted suicide. The unanimous decision also covered that Washington's and New York's bans on euthanasia were constitutional. On the other hand, it did not rule whether or not it is legal for a state to have laws that allowed it, therefore letting Oregon off the hook for the time being (Matas 17). In October 1999, the House of Representatives passed the Pain Relief Promotion Act. It is a bill that would legally criminalize a physician if a pain medication dosage is above what is needed to relieve pain. The Senate rejected the bill and it is in the process of being revised for a future vote (Ruggless-Ash). California also recently tried to legalize euthanasia, but the people of California voted against it (Johnson 33).

A Right to Life named Annette Patterson lawyer said: "It's becoming the abortion issue of the next century and just as nasty. Yet it is even more important because how we die concerns everyone (Johnson 31)." There is a strong element of truth in this statement. Even though a miniscule percentage of people would ever request assistance in dying, to legalize "controlled" euthanasia would create a wide doorway for open and uncontrolled physician-assisted suicide (Meier 37). Oregon's Death with Dignity law, effective since November 4, 1997, did exactly that (Oregon 41). I believe that God wants the sanctity of life to be upheld at every cost, no matter the circumstances surrounding the issue. In our modern world, people only think of themselves and their own selfish desires, not necessarily for the good of another's life. To love someone is to help that person improve the condition of life, not destroy it because it was a personal choice. In Matthew 24:12, it states that "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold (Matthew)."

Attorney Janet Reno reversed Constantine's ruling by mid-1998. She stated "that doctors who use the law to prescribe lethal drugs to te

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