In the realm of contentious social issues, few topics evoke as much debate and emotion as Euthanasia. Many historians are of the belief that the euthanasia debate as we know it was triggered by the works of 19th century British scientists Charles Darwin, Francis Galton and Herbert Spencer, the former lending his name to the scientific ideology known as Social Darwinism.
In the annals of criminal history, few figures evoke as much horror and revulsion as Dr Harold Shipman, the British doctor who became the world’s most prolific serial killer. Dubbed the Angel of Death, Shipman’s heinous crimes shattered the trust between patients and physicians and sent shockwaves through the medical community.
In the annals of criminal history, certain cases stand out not just for the magnitude of the crimes involved, but also for the apparent actions of a state to cover them up and absolve the perpetrator. There can perhaps be no more disturbing example than the case of Dr. John Bodkin Adams. Adams was a man whose polite demeanor and status as a physician masked a sinister reality.