A new bill would make it explicitly illegal to encourage another person to commit suicide in Massachusetts if the encourager has "substantial control" over the suicidal person or provides the means to do it, but leaves an exception for doctors who help their patients kill themselves.
The new bill, known as Conrad's Law, is inspired by a now-famous 2014 case where a 17-year-old girl urged her boyfriend Conrad Roy to kill himself after he showed signs of faltering. The bill includes a line saying it "shall not apply to a medical treatment lawfully administered by, or in a manner prescribed by, a licensed physician."
Multiple media outlets are reporting that a "respected online survey" (as written in the Portland Press Herald's lede) shows that Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the only Republican in New England's congressional delegation, is losing her "once-strong" approval rating. The New York Times further notes that the moderate Republican senator has lost her popularity because of her apparent support of Donald Trump and because of her critical vote in confirming Supreme Court Justice Brett Cavanaugh to the nation's highest court last year.
The Portland Press Herald (Press Herald) reports that Morning Consult conducted an online poll "with nearly 2000 Maine voters between April and June" and "found Collins had the second-lowest approval rating of any U.S. senator."
