Originally published at National Catholic Register
Bishop William E. Koenig of the Diocese of Wilmington praised the governor’s move in a statement.
The governor of Delaware, John Carney, used his executive power on Friday to veto a bill that would have legalized euthanasia in the First State.
Carney, the outgoing Democratic governor, rejected House Bill 140 a week after it made it to his desk. The proposed law, commonly referred to as a physician-assisted suicide law, would have allowed terminally ill people with less than six months to live to request and take medication to end their lives.
The bill passed both houses of the Delaware State Assembly in the spring. The state House of Representatives approved the proposed law by a 21 to 16 vote on April 18. The state Senate passed the legislation by the narrowest of margins — 11 to 10.
Carney released a statement on Friday after he issued his veto, noting that he “consistently opposed a state law that would allow physician-assisted suicide. … I am fundamentally and morally opposed to … enabling someone, even under tragic and painful circumstances, to take their own life.”
“I still don’t believe a firm consensus has been reached on what is a very
