Cyprus, Nicosia — A trial of a British man charged with the planned murder of a sick wife is underway on Thursday in Paphos, a coastal resort in Cyprus, and defense lawyers are instead charged with David Hunter’s support for suicide. Insisted that it should be done.
Prosecutor Andreas Hajikirou said the postponement was due to a conflict in court schedules and will resume on September 19. The hunter, 74, will continue to be detained until then.
Justice Abroad, a group of Britons defending foreign legal difficulties, said the proceedings against Hunters are likely to be the first euthanasia cases attempted in the eastern Mediterranean island nation. It comes when parliamentarians discuss whether euthanasia is non-criminalized in the midst of strong opposition from conservatives, including the influential Orthodox Church.
Hunter’s wife, Janice, 74, died in December 2021 at the retirement home of a Paphos couple, home to many of up to 60,000 British expatriates.
Justice Abroad spokesman Michael Pollack said Janice is taking heavy medications for certain blood cancers. Attorney General George Subvides of Cyprus has rejected a defense request to reduce allegations of aiding suicide, he said.
“No one believes Mr. Hunter should go to jail for this,” Pollack told The Associated Press.
Hunter’s daughter Leslie told the British newspaper Miller that her mother “was begging him for a long time (to help her death) and was very clear about what she wanted.”
However, the prosecutor says there is no concrete evidence (like a written note) that suggests that the hunter’s wife specifically asked him to help the hunter’s wife help her death.
Prosecutors also objected to the medical diagnosis that proved that Janice Hunter was suffering from leukemia or “blood cancer.” They also said lawyers had declined an arrangement to convict hunters of manslaughter.
Paulack argued that the prosecutor was still burdened with motivation for why the hunter wanted to kill his wife. According to Paulack, the Britons were so distraught after the death of his wife that they attempted suicide attempt.
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