A Boston Globe journalist is under fire after signing a legal notice that he helped a retired nurse die by assisted suicide before writing about the harrowing experience.
Lynda Bluestein, 76, traveled from Connecticut to Vermont to end her life earlier this month by taking lethal prescription drugs: a journey Globe chronicleIt’s Kevin Cullen.
It has since emerged that Cullen not only witnessed the story, but also signed a form attesting that Bluestein was in a clear state of mind when deciding to die.
There is no suggestion that Cullen broke the law, but critics are now questioning the ethics of his decision.
The Globe’s executive editor, Nancy Barnes, added a note to the story published on the newspaper’s front page on Sunday stating that Cullen’s actions had violated the Globe’s standards and that Cullen regrets having signed the form for Bluestein.
Lynda Bluestein, 76, traveled from Connecticut to Vermont to end her life earlier this month by taking lethal prescription drugs.
Boston Globe journalist Kevin Cullen signed a form attesting that Bluestein was in a clear state of mind.
Globe executive editor Nancy Barnes added a note to the story published in the newspaper on Sunday.
He Editor’s noteread in part: ‘It is a violation of Globe standards for a journalist to insert himself into the story he is covering. The fact that it was intended primarily as a gesture of consideration and courtesy does not alter the fact that it was off limits.’
‘After reviewing these details, we concluded that this error did not significantly affect the outcome of this story: Bluestein died on January 4 and likely would have found another signatory in the preceding months.
“For that reason, we chose to publish this powerful story, featuring exceptional photojournalism, while sharing these details with complete transparency.”
The online story includes a link to the editor’s note, but not the note itself. DailyMail.com has contacted the Boston Globe for comment.
Boston Herald Columnist Rick Sobey claims that Cullen committed the “mortal sin” of journalism by becoming involved in a story, since journalists should remain independent.
John Watson, a professor of journalism ethics at American University, told Sobey that he finds the situation disturbing because the reporter “played an essential role in the development of this story.”
“They disqualified themselves from telling the story and should have withdrawn when they realized the journalist committed a mortal sin,” the ethics professor said.
Watson also criticized the Globe for publishing the article after admitting the ethics violation.
Bluestein’s last words were: “I’m so happy I don’t have to do this (suffer) anymore,” her husband, Paul, wrote in an email to the Compassion & Choices group.
Bluestein was diagnosed with cancer in March 2021. At that time, he was given six months to three years to live.
Herald columnist Sobey noted that Cullen had previously found himself in trouble after being accused of exaggerating his reporting on the Boston Marathon bombings.
Cullen was suspended from the Globe for three months in 2018 after he was found to have fabricated details about the 2013 attacks in radio interviews and other public appearances.
As DailyMail.com previously reported, Vermont is the first state in the nation to change its laws to allow non-residents to use the law to die there.
There are 10 states that allow physician-assisted suicide. Critics of such laws say that without residency requirements states risk becoming assisted suicide tourism destinations.
Vermont law, in effect since 2013, allows doctors to prescribe lethal drugs to people with an incurable disease that is expected to kill them within six months.
Last May, Vermont became the first state in the country to change its physician-assisted suicide law to allow terminally ill people from out of state to take advantage of it to end their lives.
Bluestein had sued Vermont in federal court in 2022, alleging that its residency requirement violated the Commerce Clauses, Equal Protection, and Privileges and Immunities of the Constitution.
Supporters say the law has strict safeguards, including a requirement that those who wish to use it be able to make and communicate their health care decision to a doctor.
Patients must submit two verbal requests to the doctor during a set period of time and then submit a written request, signed in the presence of two or more non-interested party witnesses.
Witnesses must sign and affirm that the patients appeared to understand the nature of the document and were free of duress or undue influence at the time.
Others express moral opposition to assisted suicide, saying there are no safeguards to protect vulnerable patients from coercion.
Bluestein, a lifelong activist who advocated for similar legislation to be passed in Connecticut and New York, which did not happen, wanted to make sure she did not die like her mother, in a hospital bed after a prolonged illness.
She said last year that she wanted to pass away surrounded by her husband, children, grandchildren, wonderful neighbors, friends and her dog.
“I wanted to have a death that was meaningful, but that didn’t take forever… to die,” he insisted.
“I want to live the way I always have and I want my death to be in line with the way I always wanted my life to be,” Bluestein said.
Her last words were, “I’m so happy I don’t have to do this (suffer) anymore,” her husband, Paul, wrote in an email to the Compassion & Choices group.