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Assisted suicide case before high court
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ATLANTA — Georgia's top court is considering a high-profile debate over whether a state law designed to discourage assisted suicides also violates free speech rights.

The arguments came before the Georgia Supreme Court on Monday after years of litigation between state authorities and four members of the Final Exit Network charged with breaking the law for helping a 58-year-old cancer-stricken man die.

Defense attorneys contended at oral arguments that the 1994 state law used to charge the four violates First Amendment rights and should be struck down by the justices. If the government was interested in preventing suicide, defense attorney Robert Rivas argued, then lawmakers should have adopted a law specifically outlawing it.

But prosecutors countered that the Georgia law doesn't infringe on the speech rights of people who support assisted suicide, only those who take concrete steps to carry one out. Forsyth County District Attorney Penny Penn argued that Georgia law doesn't even ban assisted suicide — as long as it's not being publicly advertised.

The four members of the network were arrested in February 2009 after John Celmer's death at his north Georgia home. They were arrested after an eight-month investigation by state authorities, in which an undercover agent posing as someone seeking to commit suicide infiltrated the group.

A grand jury in March 2010 indicted Ted Goodwin, the group's former president; group member Claire Blehr; ex-medical director Dr. Lawrence D. Egbert; and regional coordinator Nicholas Alec Sheridan. The four pleaded not guilty to charges that they tampered with evidence, violated anti-racketeering laws and helped the man kill himself.

The four hired a host of well-known defense attorneys, who soon took aim at what they believed to be the weak point in the case: The Georgia law that makes it a felony for anyone who "publicly advertises, offers or holds himself or herself out as offering that he or she will intentionally and actively assist another person in the commission of suicide and commits any overt act to further that purpose."

They claimed it violated their free speech rights because instead of criminalizing suicide or assisted suicide, it bans people from publicly speaking about assisted suicide and then participating in the death. They asked a Forsyth County judge in December to dismiss the charges on free speech grounds.

The judge rejected the request in April, ruling that "pure speech is in no way chilled or limited by the law." The case was sent to the Georgia Supreme Court, which is expected to release a ruling within months. The case, which is closely watched by legal observers and right-to-die advocates, could not only decide the future of the prosecution but also reshape Georgia's end-of-life policy.

Penn, the Forsyth prosecutor, argued the law doesn't remotely infringe on free speech rights because advocates can broadcast their views about assisted suicide as long as they don't take action. She said the law was aimed at preventing assisted suicides from the likes of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, the late physician who sparked the national right-to-die debate.

"The concern is not with a private actor — a family, a friend, a clergy member," said Penn, who said "privately offered" assisted suicides would likely be tolerated under the law.

Rivas, the defense attorney, said the law should be struck down because it doesn't pass the First Amendment's "smell test." He said the law punishes only those involved in assisted suicides if they speak publicly about it, but does nothing to block an assisted suicide from being carried out by friends, families, or even a sworn enemy or prospective heir.

"If Georgia had any interest in the prevention of assisted suicide, Georgia law would simply prohibit it," he said.

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Georgia Motorcycle Safety Program announces grant
Funds earmarked for Share the Road initiatives
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Grant funding totaling $93,458 has been awarded to the Georgia Motorcycle Safety Program (GMSP) by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. The approved funding will be used to increase motorcycle safety awareness and outreach by encouraging all motorists and motorcyclists to Share the Road.

“The need for motorcycle safety programs is greater than ever, and this support from GOHS enables motorcycle safety programs and impaired riding initiatives to reach riders and non-riders alike” said Commissioner Spencer R. Moore. “Thank you GOHS for helping (the Department of Driver Services) and GMSP educate and encourage all Georgia drivers to ‘Share the Road.’”

The grant allows DDS to further develop the Motorcycle Safety Outreach Program by continuing to fund a position to promote state and national safety initiatives. The GMSP outreach coordinator researches, coordinates and helps maintain an adequate presence at industry events, local schools and colleges, regional meetings and festivals to increase awareness of motorcycles on the roadways and provide the most current information on motorcycle safety initiatives.

Visitors to a GMSP event display are also encouraged to sign up for regular newsletters which provide additional safety information, as well as review the motorcycle safety message on other social media platforms.

GMSP regulates motorcycle training for new riders, as well as seasoned riders, who want to learn how to ride a motorcycle legally and safely. The program is based on a continuum of learning and therefore offers three entry points to rider education.

Students participating in the Basic Riders Course do not need specialized motorcycle equipment, as the GMSP provides both a motorcycle and a helmet to class participants. Upon successful completion of the course, participants receive a 90-day license waiver card that exempts them from both the written and on-cycle skills tests needed to obtain a Class M license in the state of Georgia.

Please visit the DDS website at www.dds.georgia.gov for many online services including the convenience of enrolling in a GMSP training class and accessing many licensing services.

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