Bothell man sentenced to 2 years for killing terminally ill wife
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EVERETT, Wash. -- A Bothell man who shot and killed his terminally ill wife will spend the next two years in prison, but his daughter is defending her dad and calls the sad incident a "mercy killing."
Donald McNeely pleaded guilty Thursday to second-degree murder and was sentenced to two years in prison.
McNeely's daughter, Nikki Bryant, said no crime was committed and said the shooting was an act of mercy.
"He loved my mother," Bryant said. "He still loves her very, very much."
In fact, Bryant said he loved her so much that he was willing to give up his own freedom to end her suffering.
"I think that was his only option," she said. "It was very much a mercy killing."
A brain tumor ravaged Linda McNeely's body, and Bryant said it also broke her spirit.
"She was suffering beyond anything I'd ever seen. She couldn't move without screaming. The neighbors could hear her screaming, she was in so much pain," Bryant said.
Bryant said her mother wanted to end her own life with a lethal dose of medication under Washington's Death with Dignity Law, but her particular diagnosis took that option off the table.
"I heard her tell my dad that she wanted him to shoot her. We all said, 'Oh mom, come on now,' (but) she was like, 'No, I'm done.' She didn't want to live anymore," Bryant said.
In the end, Linda was too weak to commit suicide on her own, so her husband fulfilled her dying wish before calling his children to tell them what happened, according to Bryant.
"We just cried, knelt over her body and cried," Bryant said. "Then the cops had surrounded the neighborhood."
McNeely called the police himself, and when they arrived he was arrested and later charged with murder. A judge could have sentenced him to 18 years in prison, but he instead handed down a two-year sentence.
Bryant said she will wait to spread her mother's ashes until her dad gets out of prison
Donald McNeely pleaded guilty Thursday to second-degree murder and was sentenced to two years in prison.
McNeely's daughter, Nikki Bryant, said no crime was committed and said the shooting was an act of mercy.
"He loved my mother," Bryant said. "He still loves her very, very much."
In fact, Bryant said he loved her so much that he was willing to give up his own freedom to end her suffering.
"I think that was his only option," she said. "It was very much a mercy killing."
A brain tumor ravaged Linda McNeely's body, and Bryant said it also broke her spirit.
"She was suffering beyond anything I'd ever seen. She couldn't move without screaming. The neighbors could hear her screaming, she was in so much pain," Bryant said.
Bryant said her mother wanted to end her own life with a lethal dose of medication under Washington's Death with Dignity Law, but her particular diagnosis took that option off the table.
"I heard her tell my dad that she wanted him to shoot her. We all said, 'Oh mom, come on now,' (but) she was like, 'No, I'm done.' She didn't want to live anymore," Bryant said.
In the end, Linda was too weak to commit suicide on her own, so her husband fulfilled her dying wish before calling his children to tell them what happened, according to Bryant.
"We just cried, knelt over her body and cried," Bryant said. "Then the cops had surrounded the neighborhood."
McNeely called the police himself, and when they arrived he was arrested and later charged with murder. A judge could have sentenced him to 18 years in prison, but he instead handed down a two-year sentence.
Bryant said she will wait to spread her mother's ashes until her dad gets out of prison
Anyone who is really curious as to the state of Linda and Don's relationship then check out her Facebook page. Search "Linda McNeely". Her pictures are public. Not ONE photo of her and her husband together. The two lived as only roommates for many years. Caring for a terminally ill person is exhausting and mentally draining and I believe it drove Don over the edge. It wasn't LInda who couldn't take anymore, it was Don.Â
I too knew Linda for years. Â The whole situation is all too sad. Â Linda's close friends do know the truth about her relationship with Don in the last several years. Â Linda was looking forward to a future without Don ! Â
    Don should not have tried taking on the extremely difficult job of trying to care for a terminally ill person !  I've been there but I was lucky that in my mom's last weeks of life I had a friend who was a nurse & between the 2 of us it was more than a 24 hr. job !  Thank god for family that came & brought food & comfort.
    Don showed me that Linda had plenty of medication & told me she was not going to run out of meds even tho she had let her friends know she was worried about it.  Whether there were enough there I had no way of knowing unless I had talked to her Dr. & counted pills !!!  Don thought he was doing the right thing maybe when he made the decision to end her suffering.  Don knew that he would do time.  So be it !!  But for all it's worth if a person is being cared for by a caregiver that knows how to care for a terminal patient there probably would have been better care no doubt !!  Linda died from a bullet thru her heart not from Cancer.  Don killed her & nobody should have the right to shoot somebody !  I couldn't even shoot my dog that's old & in pain !!!!  How could he do that ?  I think it's typical that his family is on his side.  But his children knew how Linda felt about their dad & I just can't help but feel that he didn't do this out of love !  He should have been on meds himself years ago !!!!
...oh and FOR WHAT ITS WORTH...close friend...you should have known her family always had her taken care of. She will always be an outspoken woman to me...if she wanted you there...Don would have made it happen.
All through out history as a culture we have preserved and taken life...sometimes it is not always right...but sometimes it is. It really depends on the character of the person. I can only imagine what he was feeling and thinking when he made his decision. I'm surprise that people on here would be so quick to judge someone without really knowing them. I can honestly say I have had the honor of knowing Don all my life. There are few men who are as honorable and kind as him. He has children and grandchildren who he loves dearly. Knowing the cost...he made his decision and sacrificed his own name and freedom for his wife. No one else in the system was willing to help her...so he had to do what he felt as a husband was the right thing to do. Linda was the sweetest person to me and I know that she trusted Don with her life. So anyone on here that says they know Linda...should know that and hold their opinions to themselves. You should be ashamed of yourselves...for disrespecting a dying woman's wish.Â
 @Marie Conard I don't know the family, but I got the same impression from reading the story--no person would ask that their life be taken unless under extreme suffering, and no one that loved that person could ignore that plea, because in doing so, they were essentially forcing a loved one to suffer. I have to make this choice for my pets at times--it's always a tough decision, but there is only one option for those who love someone, whether human or animal. When faced with a being that has no hope for improvement, only further suffering and death, it is a mercy to shorten the time in which they would be in extreme pain. She may have had more time on this Earth, but if it was only to be in extreme suffering, it would be hateful not to respect her wishes. I think our Death with Dignity law needs to provide more options for people like Linda.
@Marie Conard thats right cousin !!!!!!!!!!
what's done is done, he is doing his time, ya'll get past it and move on. His family loves him very much, and those who know him and her know all the facts. so please get a life.
 @southsister A person who loves you so much as to remain with you to the end, and who will honor your wishes even if they know there will be consequences, is the best friend a person could ever ask for in this life. We don't let our animals go on living in extreme suffering; why would we withhold the option of Death with Dignity from a human being we love?
 @southsister He should not be in jail, that was an act of mercy. I hope the family can get past this.
we are doing our best, thank you.
If you have ever watched someone die a slow, painful and emaciating death, then you understand.
I watched my best friends mother die in her living room during hospice after a long, horrible battle with breast cancer.
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This was a woman full of life that became a skeleton covered with skin and no hair. She was terrified, in pain, asking how long she had......the worst thing I have ever seen.
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It is really hard to tell someone that can barely talk to not worry about how much time she has left, and look at the terror and physical pain in their eyes.
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If it was my loved one, I would do the same thing.Â
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I am not a fan of suicide....who is? But, I have seen how and why this law needs to be upgraded. Nobody should have to weigh 70 pounds, have pain that is indescribable and not have a choice to end it.Â
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This man did right by his wife. Period.
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So what exactly is the so called Washington's Death With Dignity Law worth if one has to be dead before it can be used to end unnecessary suffering which would make the law moot since one would have to be dead and suffering would have ended anyway.  So what is the point of this worthless law?   Oh, I know, lawyers, yes, that's it, lawyers need more money and bureaucrats and doctors need more things to do, thus, justify ever higher aside costs to our medical and legal system. Lind of like Obamacare the only care is more money for less care than before there was Obamacare to provide more care but in the end makes getting cost effective care more difficult and expensive. Hell, I'm bitching about the system and I am not even a Republican. God, where and how did I get so off track on this, oh, well, it's Sunday morning and I have not said my prayers in thirty years . . . .
Whoa. Tragic all the way across. I hope if I am ever in such pain, someone will do me the Big Favor and take me out.
I am thankful that my grandfather had a heart attack as he was considering suicide. Rather than trying to resuscitate him, I let him go.
I DO know someone with a brain tumor who DID choose Death With Dignity within the last year. Totally legal DX. Sounds like something is very fishy. Poor lady to have to suffer in pain like that.
To all of you "know-it-all" people, he is actually sentenced to 2 years in prison, so all of of your know-it-all legal stuff and opinions is not worth a crap! Weird how you can post page up and down after the fact?
It is VERY sad when a story like this one is presented to the public in such a shocking and inaccurate way. Linda's story is not about the right to die as all of you seem to believe and I promise you that Don McNeely is absolutely no kind of hero.
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I am one of Linda McNeely's close friends. Several of her friends and family made numerous and continuous offers to help Don and Nicole with Linda's care. Instead of welcoming care and support we were all turned away and Linda was isolated from people she deeply loved and trusted at the end of her life. Never once did any of us hear Linda say that she wanted to die or end her life. We did, however, hear concerns regarding fear of running out of medication and unhappiness with her family situation.
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We will never understand why Don made the choice to isolate Linda at the end of her life and why he did not seek a method to help Linda's life end peacefully. Persuit of Linda's right to end of her life is news to me and all others that were close to her throughout her illness.
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This story is an example of a sensational media article designed to stir emotion. As always with such things, there is MUCH below the surface here and the worst part is that Linda did not receive the care that she deserved at the end of her life.Â
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@FotWhatItsWorth That's exactly the point that I've been trying to make. Very well said!
@FotWhatItsWorth Actually I am Linda and Dons neice and i went over to the house when my daughter was just 5 months old and on several occations when she was ill, to sit in the dining room chair with my aunt Linda for HER to tell me that she just wishes that My uncle would kill her.....she wanted to end her life becuase of all the pain. I am a loved one and was not turned away. I heard it personally and right from her mouth, so please dont state that no one saw her or heard her say that because frankly you are wrong Sounds like to me much of it is you not being there because it seems to be like you think you know the facts that went on but really you dont know what REALLY went on...im sorry you have to spew such incorrect information to the society :(.
@Komocomments and if you don't know, pets don't go through an evaluation to see if they can be put to sleep or not, as humans do. And they tried, because of the dimentia that went along with the brain cancer, she couldn't qualify for death with dignity. It wasn't a horrid murder, nor was it murder at all It's a mercy killing, and that is it.
 @blessedangel  @Komocomments yes, it is indeed interesting that we have no difficulty being "humane" with animals, but with humans it is criminal, more often than not.
 @blessedangel  @Komocomments The man IS guilty of murder as defined by state law, no question about that. The question IS what penalty should he receive. As a result of determinate sentencing the judge was forced to sentence according to the state guidelines for murder. By giving the judge the power to set the sentence he could have sentenced Mr. McNeely to probation for what you call a mercy killing.
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Blame the "law and order" folks who have been responsible for mandatory sentences and determinate sentencing, not the judge.
 @Furd  @blessedangel  @Komocomments you are probably correct, and we should revisit the underlying laws and correct them.
I think there is a point here. This poor woman should have been allowed to access the death with dignity law. I don't know why her diagnosis made that impossible, but it shouldn't have. If she was in that much pain and wanted to end it 1) more work should have been done to alleviate her pain through hospice/palliative care, or 2) she should have been able to make the decision to end her own life. There is something seriously wrong with this. I am sorry for this family's loss. Both of the mother/wife, and of her loyal husband while he serves his sentence.
 @25yrfan Long before the diagnosis of dementia she could have executed written documents concerning end of life decisions. Without such documents the law must assume that she did indeed wish to continue on in life no matter how painful.
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This is a wake-up call for the rest of us, if you have certain desires of how to die and under what conditions you desire to have a hastened death be damn sure to get them in writing and signed by witnesses not members of your family. An attorney is best to draw up the papers but absolutely necessary.
@komocomments Pets are a breathing living species just like humans. They deserve as much respect as humans do. I not saying everyone should go kill all there loved ones. But in this case, try weren't able to do hospice care, nor would the doctors take her away. Don't you thin they tried all options? How is this mistreated? I know he loved Linda, this was no act of shame, nor in harm. She is now at rest, and peace. It's selfish to let someone live while suffering and know they can't get better. Think about it.
I haven't known this family for more than a year, and I love them all. He is a great man and what he has done was the most amazing thing I could think of. They tried every option, and this was the one option left. Ask yourselves, do you know of any other man that was willing to take away all his rights and give up his life to take someone out of pain and out misery? It takes a lot braveness and courage do such thing. He is a hero. We are so quick to put our pets to sleep, why is this not okay? Don't be so quick to judge.
@blessedangel We don't shoot our pets in the chest, and the are just that, PETS!
You're essentially saying we should start shooting every terminally ill person that is still alive.... man, woman, or child.
I'm not saying they are a bad family. I'm just saying that this story, along with so many other stories, has been completely mistreated.
Sir,
I know you probably will not read this. But I hope that a family member might and forward the message to you. My hat is off to you sir. I am so sorry for what you had to go through. Based on your faithfulness, dedication and love for your wife with this horrible decision that you both had to make, I am sure your 27 years have been nothing short of faithfulness, dedication and love. I hope to high heaven that you are able to find peaceful closure to your situation. It sounds as though you have a strong family net....perfect. Please take care, and thank you for being a good man and a wonderful example to all of us.
@peeplesuk Good man? What if it was his child dying of cancer? Would you feel the same way? Don't be ignorant. Murder is murder.
I'm dedicated to people, too. Doesn't mean I kill them.
@KomoComments But it wasn't a child.......it was a grown woman more than capable of making her own well thought out decisions........I hope you never have to be in that woman's shoes. You have no idea what it's like to live with a terminal illness.
 @KomoComments  If your beloved dog or cat has been struck by a car, but is alive, barely, and is crying is pain as you rush her to the vet, do you insist on keeping her on life support for days or weeks, making her endure the pain, or do you, heartbroken, agree to have her put down so her suffering ends? That's not murder. Murder is a different thing altogether. It is one being ending the life of another, but it's not "murder".
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 @KomoComments  @Hadrian Humans are animals and suffering is suffering, only even more extreme in humans and perhaps a few other species that have the capacity for mental suffering as well. I do everything I can to help a pet's life, but when there is no hope of improvement and their only future is for suffering to increase, I do what a best friend would do--remain true to them to the end and end their their life with respect. This is what we call "humane." It does not sound as if she had any chance of recovery, only more suffering.
 @KomoComments  @Hadrian How about you get your genitals removed to prevent you from breeding. Let's see how you like it.
@Hadrian You're right. Taking her to the vet was not an option. Taking her back to a hosptial, or a different hospice was. I can't imagine what it was like to be in her situation, however, I know what it was like to talk to her, talk to the family, and be fully aware of what they were possibly going to do.
Not only that, but I've had other family members that lived for many, many years in nursing homes. I didn't kill them because I was tired of dealing it.
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You have a good night, too.
 @KomoComments  FFS, taking this woman to the vet was not an option. Yes, you do, but not to the point of prolonging suffering when a terminal illness has gotten past the point of hope or peace from constant pain. Can you even imagine being in her situation? Have you ever been in so much continuous pain that you just wanted to die? It's not that what I think her husband did is commendable, but I think it's understandable and was a last wish from the wife he'd spent much of his life with.
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I ought to have known, as they say, never argue with an idiot for he will beat you with experience. Good night sir. ;]
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@Hadrian I realize that, but would you personally shoot your dog? I don't think you would. You'd do all you can to save the dog/cat if their was any chance.
@Hadrian You're comparing human life to a dog or cat? Dog's have their testicles removed to keep them from breeding, and I'm allergic to cats. Find a better argument.
 @KomoComments (and yes i know quite well human=/=pet but that's not the point I was making)
Yes, a good man. And although tempted to the breaking point to completely tongue lash you, I will refrain from doing that here and now.....ttyl.
@peeplesuk Tongue lash? Feel free. I look forward to your comments and encourage a healthy conversation.
This man is not a "hero" in the eyes of God. I understand his situation completely, but if he is allowed to do that,
the whole country would do the same with their loves ones, that are suffering. One of the nurses, wrote a good
comment on this, the man should look for help, there is hospice available and if he is not satisfied with the one
chosen, he should find another one. Jesus carried our cross, so we can join him and we have to carry our own
cross, like it or not.May this man leave peacefully, after he got out prison.
 @james tio The obvious lesson here is, if you wish to have the choice of dying with dignity and not being kept alive against your will, only to suffer in the extreme, make sure the person charged with fulfilling your wishes isn't a close-minded religious nut who cannot make their own decisions, even when given all of the best available evidence. They can only do what they are told and are not free to make decisions based on anything except what their book says.
 @james tio Deuteronomy 4:31
 @james tio Not everyone believes in your god.
 @james tio Your views, your religion. No, the entire country would not do that. Not many people have to go through what they did to that extreme, it's not an every-household occurance. Also, how many people could actually go through with it? You may not agree with what he did and how he did it, but at least he didn't kill her out of anger, hate, or delusion. He let her go, and he probably questions his own actions every day, despite her pain.
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all i need to say is... hes the most amazing man i know. my aunt is at peace now and no longer suffering. if you dont have anything nice to say then dont say it at all. and if you dont know him or my aunt and their situation.. dont judge. stop making up stories and lies.Â
@cohoney who is this.....trying to figure out which cousin
@cohoney If I don't have anything nice to say? I'm sorry that this story is not full of roses and cute puppies. The fact of the matter is that your uncle killed your aunt, and it was planned way ahead of time. Unfortuately, the media doesn't portray it that way.
 @KomoComments  @cohoney You are a complete moron Komo...