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0:00:03 > 0:00:06This man went abroad with his seriously ill wife...
0:00:07 > 0:00:09..so that she could end her life.
0:00:09 > 0:00:14He then had to wait before hearing whether he would face jail.
0:00:14 > 0:00:16I helped someone to die.
0:00:16 > 0:00:18That's against the law.
0:00:18 > 0:00:23People should be entitled to do it in their own homes...
0:00:23 > 0:00:25..with their own families...
0:00:25 > 0:00:29..instead of having to travel to Switzerland or somewhere else.
0:00:29 > 0:00:33Tonight he talks about his experiences with his life partner...
0:00:33 > 0:00:36..and shares his feelings on this controversial subject.
0:00:39 > 0:00:43The purpose of the legislation is to protect the vulnerable.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46I think it would put huge pressure on older people...
0:00:47 > 0:00:50..who feel they're a burden on their families...
0:00:50 > 0:00:53..and that they want to die.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22The slopes of Kilimanjaro...
0:01:22 > 0:01:26..where Aled and Janet Owen are on an adventure.
0:01:29 > 0:01:34This is Camp Two, and we're in the most amazing place.
0:01:34 > 0:01:38We're looking at the peak from here and it's absolutely beautiful.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42Nine months after reaching the peak of Africa's highest mountain...
0:01:42 > 0:01:46..Janet Owen was facing a greater challenge...
0:01:46 > 0:01:50..which would lead her to ask her husband of 30 years...
0:01:51 > 0:01:53..to help her to kill herself.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57She was seemingly healthy, but things weren't right.
0:01:57 > 0:02:01We were walking in the mountains and she'd fall over.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03She was running strangely in the gym.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06She worked for Rape Crisis...
0:02:06 > 0:02:10..and she started to take down telephone messages incorrectly.
0:02:10 > 0:02:14She got the numbers in the wrong order, and things like that.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17She went to the doctor and luckily...
0:02:17 > 0:02:20..this doctor had worked with an MS specialist...
0:02:20 > 0:02:25..and said she should go to the hospital to be tested.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31The news was not good.
0:02:31 > 0:02:36A week before the couple were filmed visiting their daughter in Japan...
0:02:37 > 0:02:40..Janet was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, MS.
0:02:40 > 0:02:46They were determined not to let it interfere with their lives...
0:02:46 > 0:02:50..as many people live with the condition for many years...
0:02:50 > 0:02:53..without experiencing many symptoms.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57But that's not how it worked out.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00She tried chemotherapy, she tried steroids...
0:03:00 > 0:03:04..she tried other drugs, but nothing helped.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06Nothing at all.
0:03:06 > 0:03:11She was deteriorating faster than majority of sufferers we now know.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16In three years, she went from someone who could climb mountains...
0:03:16 > 0:03:20..and reach the peak of Kilimanjaro...
0:03:20 > 0:03:23..to somebody who used a wheelchair.
0:03:24 > 0:03:29In her cottage in Penmachno, Conwy...
0:03:29 > 0:03:34..Janet Owen found it difficult to accept her rapid deterioration.
0:03:34 > 0:03:39She had been an energetic person, with many interests to fill her time.
0:03:40 > 0:03:44She was multi-talented. She sang and drew.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47Here's her painting of Capel Garmon.
0:03:47 > 0:03:52And here's another one of just below Moel Siabod.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56She painted many pictures.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59I've got pictures of us on the computer.
0:03:59 > 0:04:01Here we are under the Matterhorn.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05She's singing here and here she is...
0:04:05 > 0:04:08..playing the Fairy Queen in Iolanthe...
0:04:08 > 0:04:11..at Rhos-on-Sea Savoyards, about 10 years ago.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16As she was so fit, it must've been extremely frustrating...
0:04:16 > 0:04:19..when she was unable to do things.
0:04:20 > 0:04:22That was the biggest thing.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26Had she been prepared to sit in front of the television...
0:04:26 > 0:04:32..every day, I'm sure she'd be here now.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34But this is what she did.
0:04:35 > 0:04:40She walked, cycled, painted, sang, performed. That was her life.
0:04:42 > 0:04:46Janet Owen, who once worked with people with Alzheimer's...
0:04:46 > 0:04:51..had said she wanted to end her life in Switzerland's Dignitas clinic...
0:04:52 > 0:04:55..if she ever suffered from a similar condition.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59Despite the MS, they travelled the world on a tandem...
0:04:59 > 0:05:03..and they went travelling with Janet in a wheelchair.
0:05:04 > 0:05:09We went to Istanbul, Helsinki, Holland, Belgium and France.
0:05:10 > 0:05:13We were trying to do things that were different...
0:05:13 > 0:05:16..even though she was in a wheelchair.
0:05:16 > 0:05:20To be honest, she said the final five years of her life...
0:05:21 > 0:05:24..were the best five years.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29But after returning home from a difficult trip to Yorkshire...
0:05:29 > 0:05:33..Janet realised she wouldn't be able to travel again...
0:05:33 > 0:05:36..and she would soon be housebound.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39That was the end of our travelling.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42We stopped going out to the opera.
0:05:42 > 0:05:47About a week after that she said, "I'm going to Dignitas."
0:05:48 > 0:05:53When you heard those words, so final, how did you feel?
0:05:54 > 0:05:56That was a shock.
0:05:58 > 0:06:05I remember crying... but it was impossible to do anything about it.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09She wanted to go, so I wanted to help her.
0:06:11 > 0:06:16We contacted the children, Richard and Sian.
0:06:16 > 0:06:20I'm not sure how Richard took it.
0:06:20 > 0:06:27I think it's difficult for men to take in such emotions.
0:06:28 > 0:06:32But Janet was speaking to Sian almost every day on Skype.
0:06:32 > 0:06:36Sian understood what was going on.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40Did they try and persuade you not to go...
0:06:40 > 0:06:43..or ask you to stop Janet?
0:06:43 > 0:06:47No, they knew their mother.
0:06:47 > 0:06:51If Janet wanted to do something, she was determined.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54There was no way you'd change her mind.
0:06:56 > 0:07:01As I said, Sian understood how Janet felt...
0:07:01 > 0:07:05..but I don't know about Richard. He found it very hard.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07He found it very hard.
0:07:09 > 0:07:11It is illegal in Britain...
0:07:11 > 0:07:14..for a chronically or terminally ill person...
0:07:14 > 0:07:17..to receive support to end their lives.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19It is legal in some countries...
0:07:19 > 0:07:22..like Japan, the Netherlands and Switzerland.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25Some say Britain should not emulate these countries...
0:07:25 > 0:07:28..as it goes against the basic principle of life...
0:07:28 > 0:07:30..that to kill is to kill.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34Life is God's gift and I don't think anyone has the right...
0:07:35 > 0:07:37..to assist someone's suicide.
0:07:37 > 0:07:41There are other ways of helping people who are in severe pain.
0:07:42 > 0:07:48There is also a moral issue - for whose benefit is this suicide?
0:07:48 > 0:07:54I can imagine the elderly believing they're a burden on their families..
0:07:55 > 0:07:59..and deciding, "I want help to kill myself...
0:07:59 > 0:08:03"..because I think I'm a burden on my family."
0:08:03 > 0:08:10I can see some families, of course, putting pressure on the elderly...
0:08:10 > 0:08:12..to do that.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16There are also concerns beyond the religious.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19Some physicians say it would change the relationship...
0:08:19 > 0:08:21..between doctor and patient.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23According to one palliative care expert...
0:08:23 > 0:08:26..it's the doctor's duty to save lives and treat pain...
0:08:27 > 0:08:29..not to end a life.
0:08:29 > 0:08:33It's very difficult to predict how long a patient has to live.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38Even when we think a patient has only days left to live...
0:08:38 > 0:08:40..3% of the time, we're wrong.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44The changes that have been suggested expect us to predict...
0:08:44 > 0:08:47..when someone has six or 12 months to live.
0:08:47 > 0:08:53Another concern is that in Oregon, where assisted suicide is legal...
0:08:53 > 0:08:57..there's evidence to suggest that one in six patients...
0:08:57 > 0:09:00..who have taken drugs to end their lives...
0:09:00 > 0:09:06..were suffering from depression which was undiagnosed.
0:09:08 > 0:09:12At the moment, doctors can only help ease a patients' pain.
0:09:13 > 0:09:16As medical science develops to prolong life...
0:09:16 > 0:09:21..and treat a variety of conditions, things aren't always black and white.
0:09:21 > 0:09:26We do discuss with the patient and the family what's appropriate.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30The truth is that sometimes, unintentionally...
0:09:30 > 0:09:33..you can do wrong by trying to do good.
0:09:33 > 0:09:38I don't think any doctor dealing with such patients...
0:09:38 > 0:09:42..can swear that they haven't ever prolonged a patient's life...
0:09:43 > 0:09:45..whether that's by seconds or minutes...
0:09:45 > 0:09:49..by administering drugs to ease another symptom, for instance.
0:09:49 > 0:09:55It's inevitable that we sometimes prolong life.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58Out intentions are good.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02Those in favour of changing the law argue...
0:10:02 > 0:10:07..that what some doctors cite isn't so different...
0:10:07 > 0:10:10..from the terminally ill patient's viewpoint...
0:10:10 > 0:10:14..when the individual wants assurances they won't suffer.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17Having this right in Britain would ease fears...
0:10:17 > 0:10:21..and could be beneficial, according to Janet Owen's husband.
0:10:22 > 0:10:28I know she always said she wouldn't use a walking frame...
0:10:28 > 0:10:30..but she did.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34She wasn't going to use a wheelchair, but she did.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38She was never going to use a catheter, but she did.
0:10:40 > 0:10:45I think sometimes the fear of what was going to happen...
0:10:45 > 0:10:47..was worse than the thing itself.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53It's quite possible if she could have taken her life here...
0:10:53 > 0:10:57..she would have decided to live longer...
0:10:57 > 0:11:01..and possibly she wouldn't have taken her life at all.
0:11:03 > 0:11:08At 54-years-old, Janet Owen made the decision in April 2009.
0:11:08 > 0:11:12She planned to go to Switzerland the following November...
0:11:13 > 0:11:18..before she was too weak, but she needed her husband's help to travel.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21It was such an emotionally difficult situation...
0:11:21 > 0:11:24..she didn't tell many of her intentions...
0:11:25 > 0:11:28..and didn't say her goodbyes to some.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31Janet was about to leave her life and community...
0:11:31 > 0:11:34..knowing she'd never see them again.
0:11:34 > 0:11:41I took Janet to the hairdressers every Friday.
0:11:41 > 0:11:47We went to see him and changed the date to the Tuesday morning.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51We said we were going to Switzerland.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55He asked, "Are you coming back on the Friday?"
0:11:55 > 0:11:57"I'm not coming back."
0:11:57 > 0:12:02That was terrible for him. He was the only one who knew.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06We didn't see the children at all...
0:12:06 > 0:12:11..between making the decision and flying out in November.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19Switzerland is the only country which allows foreigners...
0:12:19 > 0:12:25..with terminal illnesses to go there for help to die.
0:12:25 > 0:12:28The controversial and non-profit making body, Dignitas...
0:12:28 > 0:12:30..organizes everything.
0:12:30 > 0:12:34Since 1998, at least 117 Britons have ended their lives here...
0:12:35 > 0:12:39..at a cost of £7,000 each.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43Janet Owen came to this unit on an industrial estate.
0:12:43 > 0:12:49After arriving, doctors make sure the patient is secure of mind...
0:12:49 > 0:12:52..and understands the implications of drinking the medicine.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54Janet was determined.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59We didn't talk or say goodbye.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02We just got on with what was happening.
0:13:02 > 0:13:07There was no point dragging it out. It was going to happen.
0:13:07 > 0:13:12We got there at around ten o'clock...
0:13:12 > 0:13:15..and she took the...
0:13:18 > 0:13:23..the thing, the stuff at around eleven, I think.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26She died around one o'clock.
0:13:32 > 0:13:36This stuff is quite bitter.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38You have chocolate...
0:13:38 > 0:13:40..and there were two things she said.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44She was just going to sleep and they used a tissue...
0:13:45 > 0:13:48..to stop the chocolate coming out of her mouth.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52She said, "Nobody's going to have my chocolate."
0:13:52 > 0:13:56And then she said, "Give my love to the kids."
0:13:56 > 0:13:59Those were her last words.
0:14:02 > 0:14:07The following day, Aled Owen traveledhome to Penmachno...
0:14:07 > 0:14:11..on his own, leaving his wife's body to be cremated...
0:14:11 > 0:14:12..in Switzerland.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15Hardly anyone knew what had happened.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20It was terrible. I was lucky that I wasn't sharing a seat with anyone.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23That was terrible.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25I was crying and...
0:14:26 > 0:14:29..well, it felt...
0:14:30 > 0:14:33..odd, to come home on my own.
0:14:34 > 0:14:38It didn't hit my until I got home.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42I came into the house and there was no-one there...
0:14:42 > 0:14:48..and I had a community meeting on the night I came home.
0:14:49 > 0:14:55I remember phoning someone on the committee and I couldn't speak.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57I couldn't speak at all.
0:14:57 > 0:15:03They came in and I was crying. It was terrible.
0:15:06 > 0:15:11But some say there is a better way of dealing with the end of a life...
0:15:11 > 0:15:15..which shows respect to everyone, no matter what their disability.
0:15:15 > 0:15:20There's no need to change the law, just improve our services.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24At St David's Hospice in Llandudno, patients can come on a day visit...
0:15:24 > 0:15:28..or they can stay during their last days or weeks.
0:15:29 > 0:15:31There is support available.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34I understand when people are afraid.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37We are all afraid of facing our last days.
0:15:37 > 0:15:42But I think a lot of patients are afraid of dying in pain.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46There are ways to help that these days.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50Things have changed, there is better medical care these days...
0:15:50 > 0:15:53..and not just physical pain either...
0:15:54 > 0:15:56..but spiritual and emotional.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00There are therapists to help with that.
0:16:00 > 0:16:05When someone receives bad news, they feel very low...
0:16:05 > 0:16:08..and everything seems bleak, but when they meet people...
0:16:08 > 0:16:11..and see there is support available...
0:16:11 > 0:16:13..people can get through that.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18They should have said from the beginning...
0:16:18 > 0:16:21..that there was nothing they could do...
0:16:21 > 0:16:27..apart from ease the symptoms a little.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31While Ifan Pritchard was suffering from cancer and Parkinson's...
0:16:32 > 0:16:35..his wife looked after him at their home in Nefyn.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38But as his condition deteriorated...
0:16:38 > 0:16:41..they had a place at St David's Hospice.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45From the very first minute we were there...
0:16:45 > 0:16:48..there was some hope.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51Not a hope of recovery...
0:16:51 > 0:16:54..but there was hope there.
0:16:54 > 0:16:58There was a peace I can't explain.
0:16:58 > 0:17:04It was a feeling of love. You were aware of the care they provided.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07He stayed at the hospice on three occasions...
0:17:07 > 0:17:11..including the last seven weeks of his life.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14His wife was allowed to stay until the end.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17I felt there had been a change...
0:17:17 > 0:17:21..and the sister from the ward was there with me.
0:17:21 > 0:17:26Both of us were in tears when he left us.
0:17:26 > 0:17:30I could stay with him for as long as I wanted afterwards.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34He went very quietly in the end.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37After the care her husband received...
0:17:37 > 0:17:41..Katie Pritchard is not in favour of changing the law.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45Ifan was given support until the end...
0:17:45 > 0:17:47..at the hospice.
0:17:48 > 0:17:53But he was also given support to live those last few days...
0:17:53 > 0:17:58..and weeks, and I lived them with him.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02We spent some very valuable time together...
0:18:02 > 0:18:05..and some very happy time.
0:18:05 > 0:18:10That support was provided when he died...
0:18:10 > 0:18:13..and that's what I think assisted death should be.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16By assisting them to live.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22But not everyone wants the same thing.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25As people live longer and medical practice prolongs life...
0:18:26 > 0:18:31..some argue that the individual should have the right decide.
0:18:31 > 0:18:33Your body belongs to you.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37You should decide how you want to end it.
0:18:40 > 0:18:45Liz Beynon worked as a nursing assistant for 20 years.
0:18:45 > 0:18:47Hello, Mam. It's me.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49Come in.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51Are you alright?
0:18:52 > 0:18:54Do you want anything now?
0:18:55 > 0:18:56No, thanks.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00She now looks after her mother...
0:19:00 > 0:19:03..who still lives at home in Pencader, Carmarthenshire.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07She's seen many suffering from terminal illnesses...
0:19:07 > 0:19:10..with no quality of life.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14Is there any point being alive and have someone feed you...
0:19:15 > 0:19:18..while not being able to talk to anyone?
0:19:18 > 0:19:22Someone having to wash you and dress you...
0:19:22 > 0:19:27..and you don't even know what day or time it is?
0:19:27 > 0:19:30People shouldn't live like that.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33I wouldn't want to live like that.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36If she suffers from a terminal illness in the future...
0:19:37 > 0:19:40..she wants the right to an assisted death.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43If the law isn't changed, she'll do it herself.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47If the treatment doesn't work...
0:19:48 > 0:19:51..I wouldn't want to go on.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57It's up to them. I don't know what's going to happen.
0:19:57 > 0:20:03I know what I would do, but I'm not going to tell you that.
0:20:03 > 0:20:08But the law has got to protect the most vulnerable in society.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12One expert says that would be difficult if the law changed.
0:20:13 > 0:20:19It wouldn't protect those who are vulnerable or disabled.
0:20:19 > 0:20:24In a way, I don't think it's possible...
0:20:24 > 0:20:28..to be certain...
0:20:28 > 0:20:32..that everyone is protected.
0:20:32 > 0:20:36What the English call a 'slippery slope'.
0:20:36 > 0:20:41If you allow one thing, you can start to slip down the slope...
0:20:41 > 0:20:45..and allow things you hadn't originally planned to.
0:20:47 > 0:20:52One or two will slip through the net...
0:20:52 > 0:20:55..and mistakes are inevitable, aren't they?
0:20:56 > 0:20:58Possibly.
0:20:58 > 0:21:03On the other hand, hundreds of people live...
0:21:03 > 0:21:08..with a terrible quality of life.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12Some of them want to end their lives.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16By helping his wife, Aled broke the law.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20He voluntarily told the police everything.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23I was open with them.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Two or three months later...
0:21:26 > 0:21:31..I had to give a statement to the police under caution.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34But they didn't arrest me.
0:21:34 > 0:21:38Following the ruling of the Law Lords in 2009...
0:21:39 > 0:21:42..the Director of Public Prosecutions...
0:21:42 > 0:21:45..announced what circumstances could lead to the prosecution...
0:21:45 > 0:21:49..of a person who has helped a patient die.
0:21:49 > 0:21:52Aled Owen will not be prosecuted.
0:21:52 > 0:21:55You must have the checks and balances.
0:21:55 > 0:22:01The CPS has around 20 guidelines to check...
0:22:01 > 0:22:05..to make sure you're not taking advantage of anyone.
0:22:05 > 0:22:09It's still against the law to do it...
0:22:09 > 0:22:14..but it's not in the public interest to take it forward.
0:22:14 > 0:22:16I think that's right.
0:22:30 > 0:22:35Janet was cremated in Zurich and there's no grave here.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37There's nothing here.
0:22:37 > 0:22:41I built a memorial at the top...
0:22:41 > 0:22:46..where I can go to remember her...
0:22:46 > 0:22:48..and to bury her ashes.
0:22:51 > 0:22:55I'm sure she left us too early...
0:22:55 > 0:22:57..when she was fit.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00If you could do it here...
0:23:00 > 0:23:05..I'm sure she would have waited.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08That's all I'd like to see happen.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13You should have the right to do it in your own home...
0:23:13 > 0:23:16..with your family, instead of travelling to Switzerland...
0:23:16 > 0:23:18..or somewhere else.
0:23:22 > 0:23:26If you want more information or details on tonight's subject...
0:23:26 > 0:23:30..call our helpline on 0800 83 44 44.
0:23:30 > 0:23:32The calls are free from BT landlines...
0:23:33 > 0:23:36..and the lines will be open for a week.
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