Why an Ontario couple is leading MAID lawsuit before B.C. Supreme Court
Global News
The O'Neills are at the centre of a Charter of Rights challenge, now before the B.C. Supreme Court, that seeks to end the practice of so-called "forced transfers."
Gaye and Jim O’Neill have spent countless hours thinking about their daughter’s final hours in April 2023.
It’s a memory they say they’d wish on no one — and it’s the reason why they joined a years-long legal campaign to change the way medical assistance in dying is delivered in British Columbia.
The O’Neills are at the centre of a Charter of Rights challenge, now before the B.C. Supreme Court, that seeks to end the practice of so-called “forced transfers” — compelling patients to leave faith-based medical facilities before receiving medical assistance in dying.
Sam O’Neill died with medical assistance at age 34, roughly a year after she was diagnosed with cervical cancer that had spread to other parts of her body.
Her family remembers Sam, the eldest of three children, as stubborn and fiercely independent, kind and encouraging. She loved animals — so much so that she tried to convince loved ones to take up her vegan lifestyle.
“She would stick up for the rights of animals, but she also stuck up for the rights for people. She never wanted a bad word about people,” said Gaye O’Neill.
Sam travelled the world before moving from her home province of Ontario to Vancouver, where she built a rich life with a close-knit circle of friends. She wrote a travel blog, which Gaye said was “hysterically funny.”
Sam was active: she played soccer and hockey as a kid, and her kind nature and big heart endeared her to teammates. She logged a personal best time in her 10th marathon in California in December 2021.
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