WeVote
Log In

Bill

Bill

S 1109

An Act relative to preventing suicide

194th Legislature (2025-2026) Introduced by Barry Finegold and 3 co-sponsors

Imposes up to 5 years in prison for individuals who, knowing another’s suicidal ideation, coercively or causally facilitates or assists a death or suicide attempt.

Accompanied a new draft, see S3027
0
WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · S 1109

Summary — S 1109: "An Act relative to preventing suicide"

Note on source materials
- The provided documents appear to include materials from more than one jurisdiction and multiple bills (including an Idaho appropriations bill and a Massachusetts Senate bill). This summary focuses on the substantive bill text labeled “An Act relative to preventing suicide” (the text that would insert Section 16A into Chapter 265), since that text defines the policy being proposed. Where procedural dates/conflicting sponsorship appear in the record, I note the inconsistency below.

Main purpose

Create a new criminal offense that targets persons who, knowing another’s suicidal ideation, intentionally coerce, encourage, provide means, or physically assist another person to die by suicide (or attempt suicide). The statute is framed as a suicide-prevention public-safety measure by imposing criminal liability on third parties whose conduct contributes to another person’s suicide or suicide attempt.

Key provisions

  • New statutory definitions:
    • “Suicide,” “suicide attempt,” “suicidal ideation,” and “knowledge of suicidal ideation” (explicitly includes prior attempts, planned methods, intent, or prior expression).
  • Criminal offense (penalty up to 5 years’ imprisonment in state prison) where a person:
    1. Having knowledge of another’s suicidal ideation, and
      • (i) exercises substantial control over the person (by controlling location/circumstances, deceptive manipulation, or undue influence),
      • (ii) intentionally coerces or encourages that person to die by or attempt suicide, and
      • (iii) the coercion/encouragement results, in whole or in part, in the person’s death by or attempt to die by suicide; or
    2. Having knowledge of another’s suicidal ideation, and
      • (i) intentionally provides the physical means (or knowledge of such means) to enable suicide and the person dies or attempts suicide; or
      • (ii) participates in a physical act that causes, aids, encourages, or assists the person to die by or attempt suicide.
  • Exemptions:
    • Lawful medical treatment administered by or prescribed by a licensed physician is excluded.
  • Double jeopardy/overlap:
    • A conviction under this section precludes separate prosecution or punishment for manslaughter under section 13 for the same conduct.

Who is affected

  • Primary targets: individuals who knowingly coerce, manipulate, provide means, or physically assist a person with suicidal ideation to attempt or die by suicide — this can include family members, intimate partners, caregivers, or others in positions of control or influence.
  • Indirectly affected: clinicians, mental-health providers, social-service workers and others may need to be aware of the statute’s scope; the medical treatment exemption protects licensed physicians acting within lawful treatment.
  • Prosecutors and courts will need to interpret “knowledge,” “substantial control,” “coerce,” “encourage,” and “provide means.”

Procedural/timeline status (from provided records)

  • Text appears filed in the Massachusetts Senate docket (Senate Docket No. 2237; Senate Bill No. 1109), originally filed 01/17/2025 with sponsors including Barry R. Finegold et al.; referred to the Judiciary in Massachusetts.
  • The user-supplied hearing is scheduled for 04/08/2025 (01:00–02:30 PM in A-2). Note: other supplied legislative actions and dates appear to relate to different bills or jurisdictions (including an Idaho appropriations bill also labeled S 1109). Those entries create ambiguity about sponsor names and enactment status; they do not alter the substance of the suicide-prevention text summarized above.

Potential impacts and implementation issues

  • Criminalizes a range of third‑party conduct that contributes to suicide, which could deter coercive/assistive behaviors but may raise prosecution challenges (proving knowledge and intent, distinguishing protected medical conduct, and defining “substantial control” or “encouragement”).
  • Risk of chilling benign speech or assistance unless courts interpret intent/knowledge narrowly.
  • No fiscal note included in the suicide-prevention text; potential costs could arise for law enforcement, prosecutions, and corrections if prosecutions or convictions increase.

If you want, I can:
- Draft a short memo analyzing likely evidentiary hurdles and prosecutorial approaches under the bill,
- Produce suggested statutory clarifications (e.g., mens rea language, safe-harbor for crisis responders), or
- Extract and reconcile the procedural status across the mixed records you provided.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

Sign in to ask a question.