Karen Ann Quinlin in 1972
This video explores the profound, real-life story of Karen Ann Quinlan, a 21-year-old woman who fell into a coma after consuming alcohol and Valium while on a crash diet. Quinlan had suffered irreversible brain damage after experiencing respiratory failure. Sustained by a ventilator and feeding tube, she entered a persistent vegetative state (PVS)—a condition marked by basic bodily functions without meaningful consciousness. Her case sparked a landmark legal battle over the right to withdraw life support and became a cornerstone in the formation of modern bioethical standards.
Hospital staff initially refused her parents’ request to remove life support, leading to a lawsuit. Her parents, focusing on her right to a natural death, argued that the respirator constituted extraordinary, painful means to prolong life.
On March 31, 1976, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled unanimously that her right to privacy allowed her parents to act on her behalf. This allowed removal of the ventilator without civil or criminal liability. archives.law.virginia.edu
Contrary to expectations, Karen continued breathing unaided. She lived for a decade in a vegetative state before passing away from pneumonia. Quinlan weighed 65 lb (29 kg) at the time of her death
Quinlan's case raised questions in moral theology, bioethics, euthanasia, legal guardianship and civil rights. Her case had an impact on medical practices and led to the development of ethics committees in hospitals, nursing homes, and hospices.
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