An 83-year-old Christian grandmother in Ontario was euthanized under Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) program this summer, and her family says she never gave her final consent, Fox News reports.
Brigitte Kranendonk gestures with her grandmother Brigitte Stegemann. (Family Handout)Brigitte Stegemann died by lethal injection on July 10 at The Pearl, a care home in Cannifton, Ontario, after being diagnosed with Stage IV stomach cancer.
Family members claim that Stegemann, a devout Christian, had already turned down MAID because it went against her faith.
"No, I don't want that," Stegemann told relatives, according to the family, who said that her wish was to die naturally.
Stegemann's granddaughter and longtime caregiver, Brigitte Kranendonk, said the process moved forward anyway, and sped up while she was away on vacation.
The family alleges later assessments showed Stegemann couldn't keep basic family details straight, though a doctor still found her eligible.
Two days before the scheduled procedure, Kranendonk said she asked her grandmother point-blank whether she understood she was going to die that Friday.
Stegemann broke down and cried for about 45 minutes,
