News: Euthanasia Case - Lecretia Seales Dies Of Natural Causes

Lecretia Seales, the 42-year-old Wellington lawyer with terminal brain cancer has died of natural causes at 12.35am this morning.

Lecretia was seeking a landmark declaration that her doctor would not risk prosecution under the Crimes Act if she were to assist Ms Seales to end her life.

The court ruling will be released by her family at 3pm today

Ms Seales health had deteriorated rapidly in the past week and she was moved into a hospital bed in her home at the weekend.

Although too sick or tired to always watch her case unfold in the High Court at Wellington, she was front and centre of the debate this week as her lawyers argued a doctor should help her die without criminal prosecution.

Tributes flowed for Lecretia this morning, with former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer praising her as "one of the finest human beings I have ever met".

"When her sickness struck she bore it with a fortitude and steadfastness that was amazing. Her idea to turn her experience into a law reform project was typical of her," he said in a statement posted on Ms Seales' blog. "I salute her."

Sir Geoffrey said he was very fond of Lecretia and her husband.

"Lecretia became not only my professional colleague but also my friend. I recall Matt and Lecretia visited us in Nelson and said they were going to get married. What a wonderful couple. A little much wine was drunk that night. Lecretia is an incredibly private person. She never sought the spotlight. And she is extraordinarily taciturn. But deep down there is a person of great compassion, empathy and judgment."

Family spokeswoman Cate Brett said Ms Seales had her family and friends beside her when she died.

Ms Seales was expected to receive a full judgement from Justice David Collins today.

Her husband Matt Vickers announced the decision would be available to the public at 3pm.

A press conference was scheduled for Ms Seales' lawyer's office at 3.30pm, where Mr Vickers was expected to deliver a statement and take questions from media.

Her family were now considering whether or not to proceed with the conference at this time and will confirm their decision later today.

Ms Seales was a senior legal and policy adviser at the Law Commission.

She was diagnosed with the aggressive brain tumour in 2011.

Her illness caused gradual paralysis, and she lost the ability to move her hand, arm, leg and also her eyesight on the left side of her body.

The tumour rendered her incapable of watching the whole of her case unfold in the High Court at Wellington.

Just as the trial ended, it became clear how sick Ms Seales was. Her husband Matt Vickers wrote of her deteriorating condition.

"Lecretia is not well. Her eyes are closed most of the time. She is having trouble swallowing. She is talking less and less."

By late May, paralysis spread to her entire body, leaving her "rigid as a plank," Mr Vickers wrote.

A hospital bed was delivered, with some difficulty, to the couple's home. This meant Ms Seales did not have to be moved to a hospice, which was against her wishes.

"Lecretia's choice is imminent, and we don't know yet if she will get to make it," Mr Vickers wrote.

"She's been through a few things already that she would rather not have had to go through, but she has taken all of this in her stride and with as much grace and dignity as she can muster."

Mr Vickers said while he did not know whether his wife would choose to die if the court ruled she could, "for Lecretia, it was always having the choice that mattered, not the choice itself."

Her case made waves abroad, with commentators and media in Australia watching the case closely. In one of her last interviews, Ms Seales told ABC how she planned to make her final decision.

"I would die at home, I would have had a lovely meal and I would have my family and my husband and my cat around me.

Asked when this might happen, she responded: "When? When I felt that my state was unbearable or when I couldn't recognise people who I love, you know. If I lose my mental faculties, I don't want to be alive because that's not who I am."

The volatility and variability of brain tumours made it hard to predict Ms Seales' life expectancy.

In early April 2015, Ms Seales' oncologist estimated she could expect to live anywhere between three and 18 months.

Source and the full story: NZ Herald