Fyi.
From: [log in to unmask] [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Sent: Saturday, 17 August 2013 4:08 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [OZMad] British judge orders UK's first forced vasectomy of
disabled man
Man with learning difficulties to be sterilised in unprecedented court
ruling
A man with significant learning difficulties has been ordered to undergo a
vasectomy to prevent him from having further children in a landmark legal
ruling by the High Court.
The High Court has ordered a man with learning difficulties to have a
vasectomy to prevent him having further children in an unprecedented legal
ruling.
The High Court has ordered a man with learning difficulties to have a
vasectomy to prevent him having further children in an unprecedented legal
ruling. Photo: PA
By Victoria Ward
11:40AM BST 16 Aug 2013
Mrs Justice Eleanor King, sitting in the Court of Protection, said there was
"no question" of the 36-year-old having the mental capacity to use
contraception and that it was "lawful and overwhelmingly in his best
interests" for him to be sterilised.
The man, identified only as DE, and his long-term girlfriend who also has
learning difficulties, had a son in 2010.
As a result, measures were taken to prevent another pregnancy and DE was
required to be supervised at all times, effectively losing his limited but
“hard-won” independence.
The consequences were "profound" for both families and the judge noted that
the couple’s long-standing relationship "nearly broke under the strain, but
remarkably weathered the storm".
The little boy is now cared for by his maternal grandmother but the court
was told it was "inevitable" that if they had another baby it would be taken
into care, causing significant psychological distress and likely resulting
in the breakdown of their relationship.
DE, who has a mental age of between six and nine, has made it clear that he
does not want any more children. Although he enjoys playing with his son for
up to an hour at a time, the court heard he took no parental responsibility
and did not want to give up his own life to be a father.
Mrs Justice Eleanor King said she considered the restoration of his
independence and the resumption of his relationship to be of the utmost
importance and agreed with his carers that it should be protected and
nurtured.
Ruling that a vasectomy was “undoubtedly” in DE’s best interest, she
insisted that the seriousness of making an order which “had the effect of
taking away the fertility of a man” had not been underestimated.
"In my judgment it is overwhelmingly in DE’s best interests to have a
vasectomy," she said.
"That being said the court does not make such an order lightly, conscious as
it is that for the court to make an order permitting the lifelong removal of
a person’s fertility for non-medical reasons requires strong justification."
The unprecedented judgment followed an emotional four-day trial and marked
the culmination of a three-year legal battle for DE’s parents, who live with
their son in the Midlands.
The couple went to their local GP to request he had a vasectomy in 2010 and
the matter was referred to his local NHS Trust, which made the application
to the Court of Protection with the support of his parents, GP and the local
authority involved in his care.
Angus Moon QC, for the Official Solicitor, appointed to represent DE, said
the "truly exceptional" case should not be seen as a green light for other
applications for people with learning difficulties to have a vasectomy and
insisted that the proceedings were "not covered by a shadow of eugenics".
Campaigners welcomed the ruling but warned that sterilisation was a “serious
medical intervention” that had a fundamental impact on human rights.
Beverley Dawkins, policy manager at learning disability charity Mencap,
said: “Decisions in such a case must always be about the specific
circumstances of the individual and it’s important that every alternative is
considered, to ensure the least restrictive option is chosen.
“The court seems to have carefully weighed up what is in the best interests
of this man, and reached a balanced decision that allows him to continue a
loving relationship with his partner.
“We welcome the emphasis placed on the fact that this is an exceptional case
and should not be seen as a green light for other applications for
sterilisation in respect of people with a learning disability.”
There is only one known previous case involving an application for male
sterilisation and it was refused in 1999. The court ruled that a vasectomy
would not be in the best medical and emotional interests of the 28-year-old
man, who had Down's Syndrome, despite his mother's wishes to the contrary.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/10247073/Man-with-learning-difficulti
es-to-be-sterilised-in-unprecedented-court-ruling.html
UK's notorious 'Court of Protection' is a secret court, media and public
banned from witnessing any of its proceedings. Every single assertion and
statement the court releases to the press, is carefully massaged to fit the
narrative the court wishes to convey.
Clearly men with this level of disability have existed in the UK many times
before without this ever having been resorted to before. Why now?
Judge orders all 'necessary and proportionate steps including sedation' for
when the day comes that they 'lead' this man to the hospital.
More in the 'Court of Protection'...
http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/Fate-hundreds-Bristol-area-decided-secret-cou
rts/story-18811456-detail/story.html#axzz2c9lC2cO1
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