Robert Latimer Kills His Disabled Child To Stop Her Pain

Robert William Latimer is a Canadian farmer who was found guilty of second-degree murder in the death of his daughter Tracy.

Latimer lived on his farm with his wife, Laura, and their four children.

The Beginning

Tracy Latimer was born on November 23, 1980. Tracy's cerebral palsy was caused by an interruption in her oxygen supply during delivery, which resulted in significant mental and physical disabilities, including violent seizures that were controlled with medications. She had little or no voluntary muscle control, wore diapers, and couldn't walk or talk. Her doctors described her family's care as superb.

Tracy's orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Dzus, stated in her medical testimony, "The most vivid memory I have of that visit is Tracy's agony." "Tracy's mother was keeping her right leg in a fixed, flexed position with her knee in the air, and whenever you moved that leg, she displayed agony and cried out."

Tracy also mentioned that, despite having a dislocated hip for several months, she couldn't take pain relievers since she was on anti-seizure medicine, which, when combined with pain relievers, might lead to new seizures, stomach bleeding, constipation, aspiration, and aspiration pneumonia. According to Robert Latimer, Tracy's family was not aware of any other medications that could be given to her safely besides Tylenol.

The Latimers did not want a feeding tube put in because they felt it would be too intrusive, even though, according to the Supreme Court's ruling in 2001, it might have allowed for the administration of more potent painkillers and enhanced her nutrition and health. Tracy endured a number of surgeries during her life, including one to stretch tendons and loosen muscles and another to treat her scoliosis, which involved inserting rods into her back.

Dr. Dzus proposed another surgery in October 1993 and scheduled it for November 19, 1993, in the hopes that it would help Tracy's ongoing hip pain. The treatment may have been a hip reconstruction depending on the condition of her hip joint, or it could have included removing the top of her thigh bone, leaving the leg attached to her body solely by muscles and nerves.

This surgery's recovery time was estimated to be one year. The Latimers were warned that the procedure would be painful, and the doctors involved stated that additional surgery will be needed in the future to relieve Tracy's pain from other joints in her body.

Dr. Dzus stated that the post-operative agony can be incredible, and that the only useful short-term remedy was to use an epidural to anesthetize the lower part of Tracy's body and help ease discomfort while she was still in the hospital.

The Killing Of Tracy Latimer

Laura Latimer found Tracy dead on October 24, 1993. While the rest of the family was in church, she died in the care of her father. Latimer initially claimed Tracy died in her sleep.

When questioned by authorities with postmortem evidence indicating high amounts of carbon monoxide in Tracy's blood, Latimer admitted to killing her by placing her in his truck and connecting a line from the truck's exhaust pipe to the cab. He stated he had also contemplated alternative methods of killing Tracy, including Valium overdose and "shooting her in the head".

Latimer said that his acts were motivated by his love for Tracy and a wish to relieve her suffering. Tracy's medical treatments had been termed as "mutilation and torment" by him. "How can people say she was a happy young girl when she had a feeding tube, rods in her back, her leg cut and flopping around, and bedsores?" Latimer asked.

Trial And Sentencing

Latimer was charged with first-degree murder, found guilty by a jury of second-degree murder, and given a life sentence without the chance of parole for ten years.

The sentence for Latimer was put into effect on January 18, 2001. Latimer was given day parole in February 2008 when a review board overruled the previous parole board's decision and determined that there was little chance of Latimer committing another crime.

What People Thought

According to a 1999 survey, 73% of Canadians said Latimer acted compassionately and deserved a lighter sentence. According to the same survey, 41% of respondents think mercy killing should be authorized.