Life, death and the law of the land

Nine months ago today, a High Court ruling allowed life support to be withdrawn from a clinically dead pregnant woman.

The body of the 26-year-old woman had been kept alive artificially for 24 days because the 14-week-old foetus had a heartbeat. Family members gathered around the incubator to say their goodbyes for a second time.

The court case received huge media coverage, as it highlighted the consequences that follow from the eighth amendment’s ...