Marie Fleming

Marie Fleming (26 December 1953 – 20 December 2013) was an Irish campaigner for assisted suicide.

Personal life and family Marie Fleming was born Eileen Mary Brolly in Lifford, County Donegal on 26 December 1953. Her parents were Daniel, a painter and decorator, and Annette Brolly (née Maxwell). She was the eldest of five children, with one sister and three brothers. In 1969, Fleming's mother left the family following an affair with Paddy McGowan, a local Fianna Fáil senator and businessman. This resulted in Fleming leaving school to care for her siblings. Fleming became pregnant at age 16 by her boyfriend, Johnny 'Jumbo' McNally. She was sent to Belfast to a mother and baby home. Despite pressure to place the baby up for adoption from her father and the parish priest, Fleming left the home with her daughter, Corrinna. She married McNally, and the couple moved into a council house in Strabane. They split up after a short amount of time, with Fleming going to work as a supervisor in a clothing manufacturer to support the family. Following her divorce in 1977, she met Alan Fleming, whom she married in 1981. The couple had one son, Simon.

The case commenced on 4 December 2012, was heard by three judges, and lasted 6 days. Having given testimony on the first day, Fleming remained at home for the duration of the case until the judgement was read on 10 January 2013. All three judges rejected her case to amend the law which would have allowed her assisted death. They ruled that her human rights were not affected by the law, and that she could legally participate in her own death by refusing life-saving treatment. They asserted that assistance from another party was another issue and remained an illegal act. Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, president of the High Court, stated that any dilution of the ban on assisted suicide could result in too high a risk of abuse.

In February 2013, the case was brought to a panel of 7 judges at the Supreme Court. They considered three submissions: one from Fleming's legal team, a second from the Irish Human Rights Commission, and a third from the Irish State. Ultimately, the Supreme Court upheld the High Court ruling. Curran appeared on The Late Late Show on Friday 3 May 2013, where he read out a short statement from Fleming. This broadcast received the second highest rating in the show's history at that time, and there was widespread newspaper coverage of Fleming's story.

In February 2014, her memoir An act of love: one woman's remarkable life story and her fight for the right to die with dignity was published posthumously. Curran has continued their campaign for legislation on assisted suicide and euthanasia with the organisation Exit International and co-founded Right to Die Ireland. In 2016, he publicly confirmed that he had assisted Fleming in her death, in accordance with her wishes. This led to the Gardaí launching an investigation into Curran.