Opinion ID: 6944924
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: facts

Text: On November 8, 1994, through the initiative power reserved them under the Oregon Constitution, Oregon voters approved Measure 16, the Oregon Death With Dignity Act (“Measure 16” or “the Act”). Measure 16, reprinted in full as an Appendix to this opinion, establishes a statutory framework within which a competent terminally-ill adult may legally request a prescription for medication “for the purpose of ending his or her life in a humane and dignified manner.” Measure 16, § 2.01. Fifteen days before the Act was to take effect, on November 23, 1994, Plaintiffs filed a class action complaint alleging the Act violated their equal protection and due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment, their free exercise of religion and freedom of association rights under the First Amendment, and their statutory rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq., Section 604 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 791 et seq., and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000bb et seq. After granting Plaintiffs preliminary in-junctive relief preventing the Act from taking effect, Lee v. State of Oregon, 869 F.Supp. 1491 (D.Or.1994) (order granting preliminary injunction), the district court granted summary judgment for Plaintiffs on their equal protection claim and issued a permanent injunction against the Act’s enforcement on August 3, 1995. Lee v. State of Oregon, 891 F.Supp. 1439 (D.Or.1995) (declaratory judgment and permanent injunction); Lee v. State of Oregon, 891 F.Supp. 1429 (D.Or. 1995) (equal protection opinion). Essentially, the district court found that the Act violated the Equal Protection Clause because it provided insufficient safeguards to prevent against an incompetent (i.e. depressed) terminally-ill adult from committing suicide, thereby irrationally depriving terminally-ill adults of safeguards against suicide provided to adults who are not terminally ill. The district court did not address Plaintiffs’ other claims for relief.

In an opinion issued contemporaneously with its equal protection ruling, the district court determined that the only plaintiffs who have standing to assert an equal protection, due process, Americans with Disabilities Act, or Rehabilitation Act challenge are: Eric Dutson 1 and Janice Eisner, two competent terminally-ill adults who have suffered from bouts of depression in the past, and Maryville Nursing Home and Willows Home, two residential care facilities. Lee v. State of Oregon, 891 F.Supp. 1421 (D.Or.1995) (standing opinion). In a cross-appeal, Drs. Gary Lee and William Petty challenge the district court’s finding that they did not have standing to assert equal protection and due process challenges on behalf of their patients. Additionally, Plaintiffs cross-appeal the district court’s denial of their motion to certify a class consisting of all individuals in the State of Oregon who have a “terminal disease” as defined in Measure 16. See Measure 16, § 1.01(12) (defining “terminal disease” as “an incurable and irreversible disease that has been medically confirmed and will, within reasonable medical judgment, produce death within six (6) months”). As for Plaintiffs’ First Amendment and Religious Freedom Restoration Act challenges, the district court determined that Dr. Petty, Maryville Nursing Home, Sister Geraldine Bernards as the administrator of Ma-ryville Nursing Home, Willows Home, and Fritz and June Beck as the owners of Willows Home, all had standing to assert these claims.
The district court determined that the only properly named defendants were: Douglas F. Harcleroad, District Attorney for Lane County, Oregon, and all eleven members of the Oregon State Board of Medical Examiners. The state of Oregon and the attorney general and governor of Oregon were dismissed on Eleventh Amendment immunity grounds. Additionally, the district court determined that several Oregon citizens could properly intervene as defendants pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 24. Defendants appeal the district court’s grant of summary judgment on Plaintiffs’ equal protection claim and the denial of Defendants’ motion for summary judgment on all of Plaintiffs’ claims.