THE CASE OF DR. KEVORKIAN AND MR. GALE - A BRIEF HISTORICAL NOTE

One of Jack Kevorkian's most controversial cases involved Hugh Gale, a seventy-year-old man suffering from emphysema and congestive heart di sease, who was found dead on February 15, 1993 with a canister of carb on monoxide attached to a gas mask on his face. A document discovered in a garbage bag indicated that Gale had attempted to change his mind prior to his death requesting that the mask be taken off two separate times. The document revealed that Kevorkian removed the mask only once , the patient lapsing into unconsciousness after the second request-an d dying. A search warrant of Kevorkian's apartment was issued as a res ult of this discovery, revealing a copy of the original document which had been altered to conceal the second request by Gale to remove the mask. The prosecutor decided against bringing charges against Kevorkia n because of the lack of corroboration among the witnesses present at Mr. Gale's death.